The painterly realism of Janet Fish’s art captures the effect of light and atmosphere on unusual still-lifes. In Kara, the artist composes a scene that is reminiscent of a film still rather than a portrait. This carefully composed painting allows the viewer’s own life experiences to complete the story.
In a light-filled room, a somber and reflective woman looks up from the open letter in her hand. She sits at a table strewn with everyday objects of contemporary life: a vase of flowers, a book, a bowl of candy, gloves, and shoes. The table and flowers extend beyond the edge of the canvas, suggesting life beyond the immediate scene, while gift wrap and ribbon propose future occasions or things to come.
This still-life provides a sense of place and the everyday by including more of the world and space around carefully selected objects. Fascinated with objects’ abilities to reflect and refract light, Fish often includes luminous, reflective glassware in her artworks. The artist also focuses on the packaging of objects and how light interacts with various surfaces. Kara can be viewed as a study in textures, ranging from wood to glass and cloth.
Here, the figure of the woman is painted as just another part of the composed scene. Fish attempts to avoid communicating particular messages; instead, she juxtaposes contradictory elements to create confusion and ambiguity within the scene. The artist stated, “When the figure gets into the painting, in some ways it makes it easier. The figure demands so much attention. The eye goes right to it, so in some sense that makes organization of the painting easier. On the other hand, there’s a complication, because the figure gives out so many messages.” Through a shared attention to detail within the figure and the object, Fish creates an image that is both a still-life and a portrait. Brilliant light, color, and movement unite the objects in the composition and present them as if they are clues to an untold story.
While it is natural to want to create a narrative from the scene, Fish includes several road blocks that impede viewers from doing so. There are no visual clues to indicate a particular time or place. The wool sweater and thick gloves point to a winter scene, but the bright and colorful bouquet refers to spring. Bright pops of color in the candy and the unused wrapping paper contrast with the dull brown of the shoes and gloves. The shoes, resting on tissue paper, and the gloves, with their tags still attached, appear to be gifts that will soon be wrapped. The contrast of the functional yet unexciting gifts with the bright and colorful wrapping paper creates a tone of ambiguity. This feeling is enhanced by the faraway look on the face of the figure as she rests her chin on her hand and gazes into the distance, as if dreaming of another place.
The large scale nature of Fish’s works can be traced back to her early study of Abstract Expressionism, but her attention to detail is reminiscent of 17th century Dutch still-life paintings. Just as Dutch artists carefully composed their scenes, Fish selects, arranges, and rearranges the objects in her compositions. The striking difference between Fish’s work and more traditional still-lifes is her modern and monumental approach. Rather than just capturing a singular moment in time, Fish’s canvases often represent an amalgam of changing light conditions that she observed throughout the day.
