Janet Fish
Growth#49
Egon Investment Scores
Liquidity
6/10
How easily works can be bought and sold at auction
Institutional
9/10
Museum collections, biennials, and institutional recognition
Momentum
7/10
Recent price trends, gallery moves, and market buzz
Discovery
2/10
Undervaluation opportunity relative to peer artists
Risk
2/10
Investment risk factors — higher means more volatile
Market Position
- Pricing
- Overall Range
- $60 USD to $239,400 USD
- Works on Paper
- $500 - $5,000
- Average 12 Month
- $35,845 USD (as of 2024)
- Typical Paintings
- $10,000 - $50,000
- Prints Lithographs
- $300 - $3,000
- Liquidity
- Rationale
- Moderate liquidity. Works appear regularly at auction but not in high volume. Mid-tier pricing makes works accessible. Limited top-tier auction presence suggests some market friction.
- Buyer Pool
- Medium-sized but loyal collector base
- Time to Sell
- 6-12 months typical
- Liquidity Score
- 6
- Collector Base
- Primary Collectors
- American collectors focused on realism and contemporary still life
- Collection Motivations
- Quality of execution, art historical significance in revitalizing still life, beauty and technical mastery
- Geographic Concentration
- United States (East Coast, Midwest)
- Institutional Collectors
- 100+ museum collections
- Primary Market
- Gallery
- DC Moore Gallery, New York
- Pricing
- Contact gallery for current pricing - works likely $30,000-$150,000+ for major paintings
- Availability
- Artist stopped painting in 2009; finite supply from estates and private collections
- Relationship
- Exclusive representation since 1995
- Auction History
- Work
- Five Bertolli Bottles
- Year
- 2022
- Amount
- $239,400 USD
- Auction House
- Christie's Online
- Auction Activity
- Market Depth
- Moderate - primarily mid-tier auction houses and regional auctions
- Annual Volume
- 5-15 lots annually (estimated pre-death)
- Most Active House
- Christie's (38 pieces)
- Other Major Houses
- Doyle, Heritage Auctions, Freeman's/Hindman, Rago Arts, Sotheby's (limited)
- Total Lots Tracked
- 236+ artworks
- Recent Sales 2024 2025
Title Year Date Auction House Medium Size Berio Olive Oil 1971 May 8, 2024 Christie's Oil on canvas 60 x 48 inches Eggs, Sugar, Honey 1997 April 13, 2024 Doyle Auctioneers & Appraisers Oil on canvas 40 x 50 inches Lotus 2006 May 17, 2024 Clarke Auction Gallery Screenprint in colors — Various prints and works on paper — — — — —
- Market Position
- Trajectory
- Likely upward post-death
- Momentum Score
- 7
- Market Positioning
- Tier
- VALUE (with potential for GROWTH post-death)
- Rationale
- Auction record of $239,400 places her firmly in Value tier. Strong institutional validation (MoMA, Met, Whitney) significantly exceeds current market pricing. Death in December 2025 likely to increase market interest.
- Market Dynamics
- Undervalued relative to institutional presence. Limited secondary market depth suggests potential for growth as estate works enter market. Death effect typically increases values 20-50% within 2-5 years for established artists.
- Comparable Artists
- William Bailey, Audrey Flack, Eric Fischl (fellow realists), Wayne Thiebaud (still life, light), Fairfield Porter (influence)
- Recent Developments
- Death December 2025 - major market catalystMajor retrospective exhibition in Bermuda (Nov 2025 - Apr 2026, touring 2026-2028)Renewed critical attention in obituaries and art pressEstate works likely to enter market gradually
Institutional Presence
- Exhibitions
- Biennials Fairs
- No major biennial participation documented
- Total Exhibitions
- 75+ nationally and internationally
- Group Exhibitions Notable
Title Year Venue 76 Jefferson 1975 Museum of Modern Art, New York Chrome Dreams and Infinite Reflections: American Photorealism — Reynolda House Museum of American Art The Annual 2015: The Depth of the Surface 2015 National Academy of Design, New York This American Life 2014 Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Kansas City - Solo Exhibitions Selected
Title Year Venue Janet Fish: Place in Time — Masterworks Museum of Bermuda Art Janet Fish: Pinwheels and Poppies, Paintings 1980-2008 2017 DC Moore Gallery, New York Janet Fish: Glass & Plastic, The Early Years, 1968-1978 2016 DC Moore Gallery, New York Janet Fish: Panoply 2014 DC Moore Gallery, New York Janet Fish: Recent Paintings 2012 DC Moore Gallery, New York — 2006 Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OH The Art of Janet Fish 2004 Ogunquit Museum of American Art, Maine — 2003 Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, Gainesville, FL — 2000 The Columbus Museum, Georgia Paintings and Drawings Since 1975 1987 Marsh Gallery, University of Richmond — 1982 Delaware Art Museum (first solo museum exhibition) — 1967 Fairleigh Dickinson University, Rutherford, NJ (first solo show)
- Publications
Title Year Author Publisher Type Janet Fish: Paintings 2002 Vincent Katz Harry N. Abrams Monograph The Prints of Janet Fish 1997 Linda Konheim Kramer John Szoke Graphics Catalogue raisonné of prints Janet Fish 1987 Gerrit Henry — Monograph (out of print, collector's item) - Museum Collections
- Significance
- Exceptional museum representation for a living artist. Presence in MoMA, Met, Whitney, and National Gallery represents highest tier validation.
- Tier 1 Museums
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New YorkMuseum of Modern Art (MoMA), New YorkWhitney Museum of American Art, New York (1 work confirmed)Art Institute of ChicagoNational Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.Museum of Fine Arts, BostonSmithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C.
- Tier 2 Museums
- Brooklyn Museum, New YorkCleveland Museum of Art, OhioDallas Museum of Art, TexasDetroit Institute of Arts, MichiganPennsylvania Academy of the Fine ArtsBuffalo AKG Art Museum, New YorkYale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut
- Total Collections
- 100+ museum and corporate collections
- Specialized Regional Museums
- Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art, Saint Joseph, MissouriButler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OhioOgunquit Museum of American Art, MaineKemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Kansas City, MissouriHunter Museum of American Art, Chattanooga, TennesseeBermuda National GalleryMasterworks Museum of Bermuda Art
- Awards and Recognition
- Awards Honors
Year Award 2012 Smith College Medal 1994 Elected National Academician 1990 Elected Associate National Academician 1994 American Academy of Arts and Letters Award 1993 Girl Scouts' Woman of Distinction Award 1993 American Artist Achievement Award/Oils 1993 Outstanding Woman in the Arts Award 1991 Hubbard Museum Award 1975 Australia Council for Arts Grant 1974 Harris Award — MacDowell Fellowship
Career & Biography
- Career
- 1960
- Graduated Smith College
- 1963
- Graduated Yale with MFA, moved to New York City
- 1967
- First solo show at Fairleigh Dickinson University, Rutherford, NJ
- 1969
- First New York exhibition
- 1971
- Represented by gallerist Jill Kornblee
- 1975
- Included in group exhibition at Museum of Modern Art (76 Jefferson)
- 1979
- Met partner Charles Parness
- 1982
- First solo museum exhibition at Delaware Art Museum
- 1995
- Began representation by DC Moore Gallery
- 2009
- Stopped painting due to physical limitations from brain hemorrhage
- 2025
- Died December 11; retrospective exhibition ongoing in Bermuda
- 1980s
- Expanded to include landscape elements, figures, flowers
- 1954-1956
- Apprentice to sculptor Byllee Lang in Bermuda
- 1990s-2000s
- Continued evolution including outdoor scenes, friends, family, animals
- Late 1960s Early 1970s
- Developed signature style painting transparent objects, glass, plastic-wrapped items
- Identity
- Residences
- Bermuda (age 10 onwards - formative years)Lyme, Connecticut (childhood)New York City (SoHo, then sixth-floor loft from late 1970s)Wells, Vermont (acquired house 1984)Middleton Springs, Vermont (acquired barn 1979)
- Death Place
- Wells, Vermont, USA
- Age at Death
- 87
- Cause of Death
- Recurrence of brain hemorrhage (stopped painting circa 2009 due to health issues)
- Family Background
- Father
- Peter Stuyvesant Fish (art history professor)
- Mother
- Florence Whistler Voorhees (sculptor and potter)
- Sister
- Alida Fish (photographer)
- Partner
- Charles Parness (artist, partner from 1979 until death)
- Grandfather
- Clark Voorhees (American Impressionist painter)
- Teaching Positions
- School of Visual Arts, New York CityParsons The New School for Design, New York CitySyracuse University, Syracuse, New YorkUniversity of ChicagoSkowhegan School of Painting & SculptureSchool of the Art Institute of Chicago
- Artistic Context
- Childhood in Bermuda (bright light, tropical colors), Dutch still life tradition, Fairfield Porter, David Park, Richard Diebenkorn, Alex Katz Rejected Abstract Expressionism in favor of realism. Focused on light as energy moving through all objects. Quote: 'I see light as energy, and energy is always moving through us. I don't see things as being separated—I don't paint the objects I paint one after the other. I paint through the painting.'
Artistic Profile
- Evolution
- Critical Evolution
- 1970s
- Recognition as leader in 'new realism' or 'super realism' movement. Distinguished by painterly quality.
- Posthumous
- Renewed appreciation for historical significance and technical mastery. Recognized as important bridge between Abstract Expressionism's energy and contemporary realism.
- 1980s Onwards
- Established as master. Critical consensus on her revitalization of still life genre.
- Early Reception
- Initially challenging during Abstract Expressionism dominance. Viewed as radical return to realism and still life.
- Influences
- Influences Influenced
- Influenced
- Contemporary still life paintersRealist painters working with light and transparencyArtists exploring domestic subjectsRevitalization of still life genre broadly
- Influenced by
- Bermuda light and tropical colorsDutch still life traditionAmerican Impressionism (grandfather Clark Voorhees)Alex Katz (teacher, encouraged realism)Fairfield PorterDavid ParkRichard DiebenkornJosef Albers (color theory)Abstract Expressionism (energy, brushwork - though rejected conceptually)
- Comparable Contemporaries
- William Bailey (still life)Audrey Flack (photorealism, still life)Eric Fischl (realism)Wayne Thiebaud (still life, light, American subjects)Fairfield Porter (light, American scenes)
- Visual Language
- Description
- Vibrant, tropical, high-chroma palette influenced by Bermuda childhood. Bold colors, intense saturation. Fauvist comparisons.
- Characteristics
- Gold, violet, lavender, pale blue, pink (morning light), intense oranges and reds, brilliant greens
- Themes and Subjects
- Light as energy and life force
- Transparency and reflection
- Everyday objects elevated to art
- Color relationships and movement across canvas
- Interconnectedness of all things
- Beauty in ordinary American life
- 'Packaging' concept - jars, cellophane, wrappers
- Time and accumulated perception (not photographic instant)
- Glass containers (empty and filled)
- Plastic-wrapped supermarket fruit
- Commercial products (Windex, vodka, olive oil, honey jars)
- Flowers (especially poppies, tulips, zinnias)
- Fruit (oranges, apples, pears, berries)
- Glassware and crystal
- Colored glass objects
- Mirrors and reflective surfaces
- Textiles and patterned fabrics
- Garden scenes
- Goldfish bowls
- Friends, family, neighbors (later career)
- Pets (cats)
- Vermont landscape elements
- Movements and Periods
Period Significance Characteristics Key Works Early Career (1960s) — Initial focus on fruit, transition from sculpture to painting, finding her voice Oranges (1969) Breakthrough Period (Late 1960s - 1970s) Work exhibited at MoMA (1975). Established reputation as realist innovator. Signature style developed: glass objects, plastic-wrapped items, transparent containers. Large-scale paintings. Focus on light refraction through glass and plastic. Commercial products (Windex, Majorska Vodka, honey jars). Skowhegan Water Glasses, Tequila Bottles (1974), Majorska Vodka (1971), Three Honey Jars (1975), Painted Water Glasses (1974, Whitney Museum), F.W.F. (1976) Expanded Vision (Late 1970s - 1980s) Expanded beyond pure still life while maintaining focus on light and color Moved to sixth-floor SoHo loft. Began incorporating window views, landscape elements. Added flowers, non-transparent objects, colored glassware. Increased complexity and color. Introduction of figures (friends, neighbors). More elaborate compositions. Afternoon Reflections, June and September (1978), Football (1986), Tulips and Grey Cat (1989) Mature Period (1990s - 2000s) Full integration of subject matter while never abandoning core concerns with light as energy Outdoor scenes, animals, friends and family as subjects. Garden from Vermont home featured prominently. Complex arrangements of multiple elements. Continued mastery of light, color, reflection. Maintained 'revolving compositions' approach. Double Rainbow (1996), Eggs, Sugar, Honey (1997), Anderson's Fairy Tales, works featuring poppies and zinnias Final Years (2000s - 2009) Career ended due to health, not artistic decline Continued painting until 2009 when physical limitations ended her practice. Maintained Vermont and New York studios. — - Techniques and Mediums
- Materials Media
- Oil painting (primary)PastelWatercolorInk and washLithographyScreenprintingEtching and aquatintWoodcut
Critical Reception
- Critical Reception
- Symposia
- Limited documentation
- Dissertations
- Not widely documented
- Critical Consensus
- Widely credited with revitalizing still life genre in American art. Recognized as master of light, color, and realism.
- University Courses
- Works studied in contemporary art and American art courses
- Academic Scholarship
- Level
- Moderate to high
- Monographs
- Two major monographs (1987, 2002)
- Journal Articles
- Multiple articles in Artforum, ARTnews, Art in America, Hyperallergic, The Paris Review
- Catalogue Raisonne
- Prints only (1997)
- Institutional Essays
- Exhibition catalogues from major museums
- Major Critics Scholars
Assessment Critic Publication Described Fish as 'acknowledged master of the contemporary still life' and 'visionary of the real' Gerrit Henry ARTnews, monograph (1987) Fish's career 'can be summed up as the revitalization of the still-life genre, no mean feat when one considers that still life has often been considered the lowest type of objective painting' Vincent Katz Janet Fish: Paintings (2002 monograph) Fish's 'ambitious still life painting helped resuscitate realism in the 1970's' with 'bold optical and painterly energy' — The New York Times "She's one of the most interesting realists of her generation. Her work is a touchstone, and tremendously influential. Anyone who deals with domestic still life has to go through her, she's very important." Eric Fischl — In Fish's work, 'the humble hard facts of secular life are softened, almost mystically melted, transubstantiated into sacred objects' Donald Kuspit Artforum, 2016 - Art Historical Positioning
- Genre
- Still life, landscape (later career)
- Lineage
- Dutch still life tradition → American Impressionism (grandfather) → Contemporary Realism
- Movement
- Contemporary Realism / Photorealism (adjacent)
- Influence
- Pioneered focus on transparency, reflective surfaces, and light effects in realist painting. Influenced subsequent still life painters and realists.
- Significance
- Revitalized still life painting during era dominated by abstraction. Bridged Pop Art sensibility (commercial products, brand names like Windex) with painterly realism and Abstract Expressionist energy.
- Contemporaries
- Part of Yale cohort including Chuck Close, Richard Serra, Brice Marden, Nancy Graves - but diverged into realism
- Publications and Media
Title Date Publication Painter Janet Fish, Known for Luminous Still Lifes, Dies at 87 December 31, 2025 Artforum Janet Fish: Painter of Interactions Of Light With Everyday Objects Dies December 2025 Artlyst Review: Janet Fish at DC Moore Gallery April 2016 Artforum Review of 'Glass and Plastic: The Early Years, 1968-1978' January 28, 2016 The New Yorker Janet Fish's Jarring Experiments in Still Life Painting January 20, 2016 Hyperallergic Janet Fish: Glass & Plastic January 20, 2016 The Paris Review
Gallery & Representation
- Fair Presence
- Note
- DC Moore Gallery regular participant in major fairs
- Documented
- Limited documentation
- Likely Fairs
- Art Basel, ADAA Art Show (via DC Moore Gallery)
- Representation
- Status
- Ongoing representation of estate
- Gallery
- DC Moore Gallery
- Website
- dcmooregallery.com
- Location
- 535 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
- Relationship
- Exclusive representation since 1995
- Historical Representation
Period Gallery 1971-1990s Jill Kornblee Gallery 1970s-1980s Fischbach Gallery, New York - Secondary Market Galleries
- Various regional galleries handling prints and works on paperStewart & Stewart (prints publisher)
- Geographic Reach
- Estate Status
- Works likely available through DC Moore Gallery
- Primary Works
- Limited - artist stopped painting 2009
- Scarcity Factor
- High for major paintings; moderate for prints
- Prints Multiples
- More readily available through secondary market
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