In Jaclyn Conley’s new series of paintings, female figures emerge as quiet giants, engrossed in mundane tasks or still in contemplation. Situated in landscapes referencing art historical compositions, the protagonists appear resolutely contemporary, as if temporarily traversing a distinct space-time. Alternating broad brushstrokes in thick impasto with meticulously rendered patterns or forms, Conley’s brushwork heightens the sense of distance between the towering figures and the landscape.

In 'Runner on a Footbridge', the figure dominates the composition, stepping across the winter landscape, seemingly intent on her ordinary tasks and her basket. The smallness of her mission here contrasts with her grand scale, challenging the conventional modes of storytelling based on masculine heroes, conflict and chase. Dwarfing two hunters on horseback, she embodies a protagonist engaged in the everyday rather than heroic, echoing Ursula K. Le Guin’s important essay The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction. As Le Guin notes, “before the tool that forces energy outward, we made the tool that brings energy home.”

Jaclyn Conley的富有感染力的绘画作品探索了集体记忆与文化叙事的复杂层次，将抽象与具象巧妙融合。在她的最新系列中，女性形象以沉静的巨人之姿浮现——或专注于日常琐事，或静默沉思，却散发出强大的存在感。这些人物置身于借鉴历史构图的风景之中，尽管身形高耸，却带有鲜明的当代感，仿佛暂时穿越了一个独特的时空。Conley的笔触在厚重的肌理涂抹与精细描绘的图案之间交替，使人物与环境的对比更加鲜明。

她的绘画作品让人联想到乔纳森·斯威夫特的《格列佛游记》，以及弗朗西斯科·戈雅、约翰·加斯特、尼古拉·普桑等艺术家笔下慈祥巨人的神话形象。每幅作品都探讨了人类与周围环境的关系，强调即便是一个强大主体的微小动作，也可能对景观产生不成比例且不可逆转的影响。通过这种对尺度、存在感和环境的交织呈现，Conley创造了一种视觉对话，连接了艺术史与当代叙事，放大了我们对自身存在于世界的意识。