Sea Ghosts 1935

Marsden Hartley made this painting of four fish - he called them “Sea Ghosts” - using oil paint. The way he's layered the paint is really interesting, and it makes me think a lot about process. The fish themselves are rendered in strokes of white and grey, laid down with a kind of reverence. Look at the way the light seems to catch on their silvery scales, each brushstroke alive with movement. Hartley isn’t trying to trick us into thinking these are real fish but he is trying to capture some essential feeling. I find it interesting how these ghostly figures are placed against that mossy green background which seems to glow from within. The juxtaposition makes the fish almost float in the picture plane. Hartley reminds me a little of Milton Avery, who also had a way of distilling forms down to their essence. I think this piece shows that art isn't about answers, it's about opening up a space for contemplation, for feeling.