An Electric Yet Quiet Walk in the Forest

I walked into Karma’s space in Los Angeles this past weekend and found myself in somewhat of a psychedelic, spiritual experience of wandering through the landscape works of Richard Mayhew. Mayhew's paintings are vibrant, a place where the trees and sky are saturated hues and flowing, almost into organic forms (which, of course, he is painting the sky and the trees and the land). But the works, with that bleeding of color, feels alive and alchemetic. He created dreamlike pastoral scenes—rolling hills, meadows, and woodlands—that seem to glow from within.

Rather than painting directly from nature, Mayhew worked from memory and imagination, allowing him to capture what he calls the "spirit" of a place rather than its literal appearance. For context, Mayhew was a founding member of Spiral, the influential collective of African American artists that formed in 1963. His work challenged traditional notions of landscape painting while honoring the genre's rich heritage. After his passing in 2024, Karma has reengaged in Mayhew’s work, contextualizing it with post their contemporary and modern program.

But simply put, the work is transformative, peaceful and, beautifully titled here, an understory. He created some transcendent, almost mystical works that looked at the land not as static but deeply alive and capable of holding more than just your gaze. A fantastic, moving show. —Evan Pricco