Nathaniel Oliver

Interpretation

This painting is a self-portrait of the artist lying in bed and recovering from a fever. The physical and psychological sensibilities of illness are conveyed here through color, texture, and other formal means and techniques.

Acquisition details

I was first introduced to Nathaniel Oliver’s work through KJ Freeman, whose New York gallery, HOUSING, presented Oliver’s 2020 solo exhibition Limbo, in which this painting appeared. I was struck by the general approach Oliver took in representing the figure and his explorations of painterly technique, and I selected this work from the exhibition for its unconventional use of color and pattern. The acquisition was also motivated by the museum’s commitment to supporting RISD alumni throughout their careers but especially in their more emergent stages. This was not only Oliver’s first work acquired by a museum, but the gallery’s first sale to an institutional collection.

-Dominic Molon, Richard Brown Baker Curator of Contemporary Art