Katherine Umsted's 'Take Cover' at Philip Douglas Fine Arts

Katherine Umsted's exhibition 'Take Cover' at Philip Douglas Fine Arts in Hudson, New York, runs through June 7, 2026. The show features sixteen constructions combining wood, wrapped pantyhose, and tin foil, creating tension between domestic materials and bodily references. Gallerist PD Heilman's essay interprets the works as psychological self-portraits, linking them to Umsted's earlier explorations of social friction and post-COVID re-entry. The exhibition title implies lingering safety in home isolation. Umsted's work references artists like Sal Scarpitta, Joseph Beuys, Christo, Senga Nengudi, Ernesto Neto, and Kurt Schwitters, with the latter's Merzbau aesthetic domesticated over time. Earlier pieces are unruly with foil jutting beyond frames, while recent works are more restrained. Heilman notes a shared Southern heritage, drawing on a culture of restraint and secrecy, akin to Flannery O'Connor or Tennessee Williams. The gallery's refined setting contrasts with Umsted's raw aesthetic, but the disjunction proves fruitful.