Flying to the Moon – Gold Fish 1987

Curator: This is Wanda Koop’s “Flying to the Moon – Gold Fish,” created in 1987. It's an acrylic painting, a wonderful example of her foray into figuration during this period. Editor: It’s surprisingly… poignant? These bright orange goldfish against the vast blue – they seem so vulnerable, almost lost. There is a certain naive aesthetic to this, how does it reflect broader social trends during its making? Curator: Well, the late '80s saw a resurgence of expressionistic painting with a pop art edge. Koop engaged with these tendencies, exploring personal and collective anxieties around technology and the future. She brings what art critics often consider her “trademark style.” The fish motifs became increasingly prominent in her works. We could interpret it through a symbolic lens, recalling the significance of fish in diverse cultures as symbols of abundance, transformation, and the subconscious. Their upward trajectory implies spiritual longing or a search for the unattainable. Editor: So, the goldfish, in this case, isn't just a goldfish. I see your point. Are the bright colors and scale a knowing nod towards commodity culture? They seem divorced from a natural environment here; the water rendered into abstract backdrop. The two-panel composition might speak to cultural fractures or diverging paths… Curator: Exactly. Koop often juxtaposes seemingly disparate elements to create tension and invite interpretation. This blue can also represent sky instead of the ocean; she's playing with conventional artistic dichotomies. The division within the piece could point towards increasing social fragmentation of the modern landscape—something mirrored within neo-expressionist art of the period which aimed to depict contemporary challenges via jarring composition. Editor: Knowing the cultural currents swirling in the art world at the time gives new insight into the choices made in creating this piece. I appreciate that now, though I still find myself pulled back to the core imagery, a very affecting emotional pull despite the artist's wider contextual concerns. Curator: It does exemplify art's potential to be both deeply personal and politically relevant, an encapsulation of an era’s anxieties translated onto the canvas.