Nightshade 2016

Curator: Rose Freymuth-Frazier created this oil painting, “Nightshade,” in 2016. Editor: The initial feeling is one of brooding tranquility. A heavy, verdant sky dominates, but there's a luminescent sliver of horizon promising something more. Curator: I am struck by how the composition creates such a balanced, if asymmetrical, tension. The subdued palette hinges on this central copse of trees. The lighter hues above direct our eye around and down the dark treeline. The trees ground a somewhat unsettling sky. Editor: Unsettling is spot on. Nightshades are a poisonous family of plants. By linking the image with the title we cannot separate its depiction of nature from ideas about natural but harmful elements within ecosystems, or, even society itself. Consider Romanticism's relationship to nature: on one hand beautiful and sublime, on the other terrifyingly indifferent to our existence. Curator: Yes, it's clearly referencing that Romantic tradition, isn't it? Structurally, consider how Freymuth-Frazier uses visible brushstrokes and layers of glazing to construct the atmospheric perspective. You get an incredible depth even though the details soften significantly with distance. Editor: These historical contexts highlight how representations of landscapes were so frequently used to naturalize existing hierarchies and social structures by primarily wealthy white artists and landowners. What happens when we place "Nightshade" in dialogue with issues of environmental justice? Who has access to the peace promised here, and who must bear the brunt of pollution, toxic exposure, and climate disaster? Curator: Certainly the work resonates beyond purely formal readings. Note that band of darker vegetation on the horizon line that echoes the darkness found within the cluster of trees. It makes me think the composition seeks some resolution, the balance is subtle. Editor: It asks important questions, at the very least. As it draws on artistic lineages like Romanticism, it can allow a venue for new perspectives and discussions around climate and inequality that affect a global audience. Curator: Indeed. So this work invites both rigorous visual analysis and consideration of complex contemporary issues. Editor: Leaving us both contemplating the darkness, and searching for the light.