Richard Gibbons is a Chicago architect and figurative painter obsessed with the sculptural form of the human body. Most of his work has been cool, nearly abstract, and devoid of narrative except for what the viewer might supply. But his current show, “Confession,” at Roy Boyd Gallery is a departure—a group of contemporary religious paintings, including three large triptychs, that give voice to a long-simmering struggle with the Roman Catholicism in which he was raised.
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Gibbons’s models were his friends. In the triptych Prey, we see Jane Gardner and Andrea Murphy as the Blessed Virgin and Mary Magdalene, respectively, reaching in vain across a vast black gap toward a towering cross while a rogue’s gallery of dishonored priests stands smirking at its base. In Conflexion, the central image of the show, Marco Gonzales is Jesus, slumped across the lap of Gibbons himself in a version of the pieta that’s all about confusion and dismay.
“I’m from Maumee, Ohio, a small town near Toledo. My parents were observant, and I went to Catholic schools, right through to Notre Dame.
“Sometimes I’ve wondered how different things would have been if I hadn’t had such a strict Catholic upbringing. Without any rancor, I think I can say that I would have had a much better life. My whole experience was about punishment. I’ve spent a lifetime trying to overcome the damage.
Correction: This article has been amended to correctly reflect that the art featured is provided courtesy of Roy Boyd Gallery.
Paintings by Richard Gibbons Through 8/31 Roy Boyd Gallery, 739 N. Wells, 312-642-1606, royboydgallery.com
