“Les grands boxeurs ont la rage méthodique. Ou plutôt il ne s’agit pas de rage. La foudre superbe.”
(Great boxers have a methodical rage. Or rather it’s not about rage. The sublime thunderbolt.)
-Michel Deguy
A slugger is a type of boxer who commands the ring with their strength and brute force. They dictate the pace and action of the fight, and are celebrated for their superb ‘ring generalship’. The daughter of an Irish boxer, Dwyer acutely understands how to physically control and command a space. The canvas provides the parameters for her jabbing action, for dancing, for dipping, for swinging, and embracing. Under Dwyer’s ring generalship, surfaces and edges of paintings appear like the ropes of the boxing ring; they swell and constrict with bodily elasticity. Fast gestural marks speak of physicality, endurance, and grit. For Dwyer, painting is a joyful physical performance and she attacks each one with surefooted vitality, creating lush abstractions filled with gesture, bouncing color, and looping, potent energy. In the manner of a prize fighter, every brushstroke balances explosive passion with practiced precision.
Install shot
Soaked in Petrol, 2024, Oil and oil pastel on linen, 204 x 142 cm, 80 1/4 x 55 7/8 inches
