“Sardines in USA” acrylic on paper and linen canvas by Joseph Rethlin, signed bottom left and titled on the back. Four sardines on New York Times news paper fixed on linen canvas . Unframed. Joseph Rethlin is a contemporary painter based in France, recently active in the art market. A former collector and dealer, he turned to pictorial creation later in life. His work is characterized by a predilection for still lifes: he often depicts simple objects, fruits—particularly lemons—and fish. This dual presence, lemons and fish, seems to hold an important place in his thematic palette. It reflects a taste for familiar, modest, yet visually expressive motifs—everyday objects or objects from nature that provide both visual and symbolic material. Formally, Rethlin combines realism in his representation (shape of the fish, texture of the lemons) and simplification/stylization of the background or frames, in order to focus visual tension on the central motif. 40cm H 40cm W 2cm D Read more
