Fishbowl

The title of this painting while in progress was Woman with Fishbowl: #2. Now that it's finished, the title has been simplified to Fishbowl.

Fishbowl

2018-2019, oil on linen, 17" x 15"

In my last blog post, I was undecided about the color of the upper half of the wall - light red stripes or pale ivory ones - but as often happens, the final choice was neither. The yellow serves well as a transition from the white wainscoting to her skin tone and then to the orange fish and red blouse.

I also toyed with the idea of including a black cat, Mr. Epps, but he added an element to the composition and the narrative that took the painting in a different direction. And none of the preparatory drawings included a cat.

left: drawing #1  (initial sketch)

2018, pencil on paper, 7" x 4"

right: drawing #4

2018, pencil on paper with green oxide pastel on reverse, 17" x 15"

In the final drawing, the woman was facing outwards, but once I started painting, the narrative began to look as if she was showing or offering the fish to the viewer. As with the cat, that was not really in my vision of the composition. I decided to go with the profile - as she was in the initial drawing - preferring the dynamic of the woman and the fish looking in opposite directions, with neither engaging the viewer.

Woman with Fishbowl: #2, in progress

I've been working on a painting of two artists, twins, in their studio, which is coming along quite well, but have put it aside for a couple weeks to spend some time on a simpler composition of a woman holding a fishbowl - a narrative theme that has recurred in my paintings several times over the years.

Woman with Fishbowl: #2

in progress, oil on linen, 17" x 15"

The background is all that's left to do and my main decision now is what colors to paint the stripes on the upper half of the wall: in light reds or in pale ivory tones. The lower half will be white wainscoting. I'm also toying with the idea of adding a cat - Mr. Epps - in the lower left corner. He's not in the original drawings. Will see. 

I tried a number of colors for the blouse, beginning with blue. As a complementary color to the orange color of the fish, a blue should have created a lively energy, but all the ones I mixed seemed flat instead. Greens and purples were no better, and a dark grey, while seeming hopeful, also didn't work. When I finally tried red, it immediately felt right. The quiet harmony of the orange against the red suited the mood. 

Here are two earlier paintings on the theme:

Woman with Fishbowl

1997, oil on linen, 18" x 18"

Private collection, New York

Claire

1980, oil on masonite, 3.5" x 4.5"

Private collection, Connecticut

Mr. Epps made his first appearance in the above painting, being Claire's cat. Meanwhile, the fish has grown over the years.