Eric Fischl: Seeing the Light
Eric Fischl portrays the human body in new ways in this Chicago-based art exhibition.
“Body language is like a window to the soul,” according to American artist, Eric Fischl. The human body and light are two pervasive themes in Mr. Fischl’s oeuvre. Now this combination takes on a new dimension. “He’s abstracting more because it’s more about psychology and less about aesthetics,” the independent curator Nessia Pope offers regarding Mr. Fischl’s recent portraits in a New York Times article. “More a preoccupation with the human condition, which has always been present.”
An exhibition of Mr. Fischl’s work at KM Fine Arts in Chicago, in collaboration with Hexton Modern and Contemporary, reveals this contemporaneous artistic trajectory. An amalgamation of works from various media spanning nearly a decade are on view: hand-painted collages with resin, watercolors, bronzes and cast glass sculptures. What unites this seemingly disparate work is the visceral movement of the human body and use of light — two themes that visually captivate the eye and intellectually engage the mind.
Eric Fischl has been making paintings and sculptures for nearly four decades. He is known for his work as a Neo-Expressionist, an art movement beginning in the late 1970s that rejected Minimalist and Conceptual art and restored traditional elements of Abstract Expressionism and German Expressionism. Early in his career, Mr. Fischl used the body to explore voyeurism and sexuality. But his subjects have shifted over time: from early images of suburban America in the 1980s towards portraits of friends today. Furthermore, his recent works depart from the hard-edged light in early pieces towards what he calls “emotional” light.
The pieces that make up this exhibition emphasize the human body, and they are accented by the use of light. People posing on the beach with swatches of color in the background enliven the scene; sculptures of women in mid-action denote a specific moment; and figures in a circle caught in what may be a ritual dance are a few of the many pieces on view. Evidence of the artist’s hand magnifies the expression and vitality conveyed: molded bronze emphasizes muscular legs and confident steps of figures that make up Ten Breaths: Congress of Wits Study (2007). And the whimsical brushstrokes in Untitled (2014) portray human bodies in fluid action. Far from the physical ideal, the way Mr. Fischl portrays the body lets the narrative unfold. Adding to this, Mr. Fischl’s use of light creates a lively presence.
The decision to include a variety of media in this exhibition reveals how the body and light function as a communicative tool. The eye bounces from bronze statues on plinths to watercolors hanging on the wall; each piece has its own story, but together they create an unspoken energy. Take Arching Woman, Study (2011). It depicts a woman with sinewy legs, a weighty torso and arms folded in mid-stretch; the light radiating on and through this cast glass piece softens its physicality. This juxtaposition highlights the bodily contours of a woman and the gestural hand of the artist: generating a continuous, linear momentum.
It is thrilling to see these themes unfold in other media. Ten Breaths: Congress of Wits Study is bronze statue that includes five figures in a circular formation. The movements are graceful, but assertive: two figures are perched on the toes of one foot with the other leg propped in the air; one figure takes a running position and the others are depicted with their knees bent at an angle. An ostensibly heavy sculpture appears light and animated through the craft of the human body and use of light penetrating through the sculpture’s open spaces.
What is more, Mr. Fischl acknowledges the importance of photography — a light-based medium — in his practice. The impromptu moments of photography fascinate Mr. Fischl; it is an evocative means to capture people in an “unconscious state,” as he describes it in an interview with BOMB Magazine. But his use of light is deliberate: “Light is very seductive because it contains mystery and revelation simultaneously,” Mr. Fischl explains. Indeed, lights ability to both conceal and reveal is an intriguing aspect of this show.
People are complex creatures, bearing histories, aspirations and emotions. Mr. Fischl understands how informative and revealing body language is: a reflection of one’s state of mind. Light can add to an already charged image. The subjectivity of body language and the emotional quality of light not only results in a critical, participatory role for the viewer. It also culminates in the psychological complexities found in Mr. Fischl’s newer works.
“Eric Fischl” is on show at KM Fine Arts in Chicago, Illinois, until December 6, 2014.
