Exhibition Guide
New England Still Life
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Looking at James' Approach to Still Life
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Audio
A Local Connection to Her Technique
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Additional Images
Art Object Info
Seen through a glass surface, Rebecca Salsbury James’ paintings have a glowing, eerie, and austere effect. In making this reverse painting on glass, the self-taught artist combined the influences of American folk traditions, European modernist practices, and early color photography. Her precise technique is incredibly complex: details are painted first, then color is built up in reverse, ending with the background color. Artist Marsden Hartley wrote to James of his own efforts at glass painting: “It nearly killed me and I never had the courage to take it up again.”
New England Still Life
Seen through a glass surface, Rebecca Salsbury James’ paintings have a glowing, eerie, and austere effect. In making this reverse painting on glass, the self-taught artist combined the influences of American folk traditions, European modernist practices, and early color photography. Her precise technique is incredibly complex: details are painted first, then color is built up in reverse, ending with the background color. Artist Marsden Hartley wrote to James of his own efforts at glass painting: “It nearly killed me and I never had the courage to take it up again.”