Mrs. Ethel Cushing 1909 - 1914

Howard Cushing painted Mrs. Ethel Cushing using oil on canvas and a muted colour palette. It’s a standing portrait, full length, and she seems to be posing in front of an interior backdrop. I love how the foreground flattens into a pattern, contrasting with the figure. She looks like a paper doll that has been put on top of the checkerboard and the interior scene behind. I wonder if she, Mrs Cushing, had any say in this composition. Is this what she wanted? I imagine the artist trying to capture not just her likeness but also something about her spirit, her aspirations, or the world she inhabited. There is a real conversation across time with other artists, and the work of other painters. I see the influence of Whistler's 'Arrangement in Grey and Black' in the flattening of space. Paintings like this offer us a way of experiencing the world, both ambiguous and open, allowing for multiple interpretations.