A compulsive maker, Goodhart uses materials from the windswept, mountainous landscape surrounding his Montana sheep ranch to make engaging sculpture. Window screen, rusting vents from derelict farm equipment, house paint, and chintz-wrapped sticks are layered in shallow bas relief with etched drawings, collaged on wood panels. There is a stark directness and honesty in this work. There appear to be no conventions as each piece is unique, though some are closely related through the materials used or repeated imagery. Largely self-taught, Goodhart incorporates art-historical references and modernist practices in his handmade work. There is an implied reverence for children’s art coupled with a technical simplicity often observed in outsider art-making.
www.portlandartmuseum.org/exhibitions/series/APEX/APEX-Keith-Goodhart