De Forest’s paintings and collages repre­sent graphs and charts of activities and destinations not accessible to the con­scious mind. His abstract surrealism is handled with a wit and intellectual­ism more typical of French than Amer­ican painting. However, in the forty­-five years that surrealism has been common usage it has deteriorated into a tedious international cliché, noted for its preciousness, overworked construc­tion and false air of mystery. Some of de Forest’s earlier paintings and many of the collages (bordered by carved wooden beasts and phalli) suffer from these flaws of excessive self-conscious­ness. In his best canvases de Forest relaxes his hold on the design, and the sparsely scattered graffiti communicate a spontaneous and artless image.

—Joanna C. Maglott