Stacy Fisher Explores Playful Dimensions Of Painting And Sculpture

Photo: Stacy Fisher’s artwork blends raw textures and vibrant hues, featuring a pastel blue sheet framed by natural wooden planks and accented with delicate pink lines, evoking balance and simplicity.

A Journey Through Materials, Color, And Creative Exploration

Stacy Fisher discusses her transition from sculpture to painting, childhood influences, the impact of digital culture, and how risk-taking and playfulness shape her innovative artistic process and creations.

S tacy Fisher is a force to be reckoned with in the contemporary art world. With a career rooted in both depth and continuous evolution, Fisher’s art is a brilliant exploration of form, materiality, and perception. Her transition from sculptural works to paintings imbued with a tactile dimensionality showcases not only her interdisciplinary expertise but also an undying curiosity that pushes the boundaries of how art can be experienced and interpreted. Fisher’s ability to meld rigor and playfulness, to find dialogue between color, texture, and space, and to constantly reinterpret her mediums, speaks to a creative mind that refuses to be boxed in.

Fisher’s work has been lauded by major art publications, including Artforum, The New York Times, and Beautiful Decay, and it’s clear why. Her pieces defy simple categorization, drawing inspiration from her childhood environment in northern Ohio, the digital cadence of video games, and her innate appreciation for the physicality of materials. Whether she’s invoking the memories of vast Ohio farmland and Lake Erie’s endless horizons, experimenting with the aesthetics of gaming skins, or embracing unanticipated turns during her artistic process, Fisher creates works that invite viewers to engage not just visually, but viscerally.

As an artist with solo exhibitions in prestigious New York spaces and participation in various international group shows, Stacy Fisher has firmly established herself as an innovative voice in contemporary art. Her commitment to exploration and her fearless embrace of risk create a body of work that feels alive and deeply personal. It is with honor and excitement that WOWwART magazine presents our conversation with this extraordinary artist, where she reflects on her journey, influences, and the philosophy behind her captivating creations.

Stacy Fisher revolutionizes contemporary art with bold experimentation, blending materials and form to create deeply impactful, dimensional works.

Can you describe the pivotal moment or experience that led you to transition from a sculpture-centric approach to focusing primarily on painting?

When I look back through my work over the years, I think I’ve been trying to be a painter in my own way, all along. I just needed to figure out a way to do it on surfaces that weren’t completely flat. One problem that came up over and over with sculpture was that certain colors were too referential and just didn’t work, and the reason for it to be painted at all had to be dealt with. I was making abstract paintings on the side just as an excuse to use blue and green and create patterns. So, it was liberating to leave some of those questions behind and be able to paint more freely. I was excited to introduce certain aspects of painting, like foreground and background. It’s been a new experience getting to mess with what those expectations are color-wise.

In what ways do your childhood experiences in Norwalk, Ohio, continue to shape your artistic vision and practice today?

Norwalk is situated in northern Ohio very close to Lake Erie, and I spent a lot of time with my family and friends going to the lake and appreciating the water and the view. It is also surrounded by farmland and big, open spaces- the sunsets are unbelievable. If anything, growing up there gave me an appreciation for looking. 

How do video games and digital culture influence the themes and aesthetics of your artwork?

When I first started painting on wood I was inspired by watching my son play Fortnite. It was helpful for me to think of the paint being like a skin that could quickly change from one thing to the next. It allowed me to picture endless possibilities. 

What significance do you place on avoiding the illusion of space in your paintings, and how does this choice impact the viewer’s interaction with your work?

I want the viewer to see the work as a whole and to interpret the work based on what’s directly in front of them. I’m not necessarily interested in painting the content, I want the content to be built in.

How do you navigate the tension between rigor and playfulness in your creative process?

I rarely have success the first time around when I make something, and this went for my sculptural work as well. I often had to get the saw out and chop off parts or smash something down that wasn’t working. Maybe it’s like warming up for a performance. I think my version of playfulness has more to do with looseness. Sometimes things work better when they’re less rigid, but the intention and the attention to detail still has to be there.

Can you discuss a particular project or piece where taking risks or making unexpected choices resulted in a transformative outcome for your work?

Yes! I did a residency on Governor’s Island which is a very small island off the southern tip of Manhattan. It is only accessible by ferry (no cars, no Ubers), so it was hard to bring over heavy materials. I was working on these larger paintings on paper, with a plan that they could be backdrops for sculptures. The studios were set up in an open format with few walls, so anyone could see right into your space. After a while I grew very self-conscious about what I was making, the paper works were pointless without the sculptures being there to offset them. The next time I took the ferry over I brought some pieces of wood that I could easily transport and hung them on top of the paintings. I was surprised to discover that instead of the wood acting like a stand-in for something else, that it completed the work. I became less interested in building forms and more interested in how the physicality and readymade properties of the wood changed the interpretation of the paintings. They suddenly felt more tangible and a part of the world. The shape of the work I’m making now is directly related to those paper works, where a strip of wood interrupts the flow of the surface.