Keith Goodhart: A Portrait Atlas

The latest work of Keith Goodhart will be introduced in two separate exhibitions this summer. In the Shott Family Gallery is A Portrait Atlas, a solo exhibition of Goodhart’s sculptures and wall reliefs. Goodhart’s outdoor artwork is showing all summer in the Missoula Art Park’s inaugural exhibition, By the Bike. The untitled outdoor piece is Goodhart’s most ambitious work in scale and scope. The sculpture is a brilliant complement to smaller-scale works that are more common to Goodhart’s style.

Goodhart, a carpenter by trade, operates a sheep ranch in the foothills of the Crazy Mountains outside of Big Timber, Montana. The primarily self-taught artist works in a log cabin studio where he creates found object sculptures and assemblages. He began making sculptures in the 1980s, building children’s toys and kinetic objects with scrap materials found on job sites. Goodhart still mainly uses found objects to build his free-standing and wall-mounted assemblage sculptures. He works intuitively and lets the object emerge rather than working toward an end vision. “I am continually looking for new ways to merge painting, sculpture, and drawing,” Goodhart explains. “I have always been interested in finding energy in the materials I use, no matter how humble.” His spontaneous process produces sculptures that project character and authenticity. Goodhart’s confidence and strong personal aesthetic animate all of his works.