The Stilly Night

Dorothy F. Foster
The Stilly Night
June 8–July 29, 2023

MARCH is pleased to present Dorothy F. Foster: The Stilly Night, a series of enigmatic drawings in ballpoint pen on newspaper clippings made in the final years of Foster’s life.

Little is known about Dorothy F. Foster’s work. Clues abound, but the true meaning behind her enigmatic drawings remains a mystery. Rendered in ballpoint pen on newspaper clippings, the works are innately regenerative; Foster coaxed anonymous faces from the contours of found imagery, introducing brightly dressed creatures and patterns to complete each scene. They divulge the artist’s sensitivity and openness to the unknown, yet their exact significance remains obscure...read more

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Installation ViewsIndividual WorksPress Release

An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.
An installation image of Dorothy Foster's exhibition, The Stilly Night. The works are small portraits featuring ballpoint pen illustrations on found magazine paper.

Memory is a locket that holds the loved face. Sometimes it opens, then I gaze and remember, until it clicks shut.

 –Dorothy F. Foster

An image of the cover of Dorothy F. Foster's self published autobiography, 'The Noisesome Day, The Stilly Night.'
An excerpt from Dorothy F. Foster's self published book, The Noisesome Day, the Stilly Night. The quote reads, "and forth, faster and faster. At first it made me nervous to watch him... but I tried it and think now it's good for my back... a strengthening exercise... a little child shall lead... Wish I could tell a joke like Fels docs. I forget the punch line... muff it... but they smiled to be polite anyway, and that is a real funny... I'll leave the stories to the little one and to Nona after this... Nona is steeped in the ancient Celtic lore... a born storyteller... Guess what, they want a short biography of my life. "they" being some interested, well-meaning literary agent. I asked for it .. now what shall I say? Called Fels... she said, "say, 'I was born, period.' Is that short enough?" MY, what a smart-aleck friend... well it's too short, I'll lengthen it to read thus "I was born in Jersey City, N.J, and emigrated, at an early age, to shores of Manhattan Island, N.Y., with two sisters and a mother, who had consulted her parish priest as to the advisability of taking her three small children, aged five, eight, and ten respectively, to live where she hoped to make a living, as she was a widow. He must have reassured her as we did come, to live in a rented house where Mama rented out rooms and did dressmaking... a natural-bor manager, she succeeded in educating us too. Elda went to business school, Middy to high school and college at night, myself to high and art school, and, at long last we joined, one by one, the honorable estate of Senior citizenry. " So much for that... condensed LIFE... Nona's Birthday... bought a bottle of "wee draps"... that she'll share with me and those who are invited or who chance to drop in unexpectedly. She can never take for herself, so she hung the "Irish Blessing wall hanging up in her special domain, and being a soft light green it blends well with the wall and reads, for all to see and read, "May there always be work for your hands to do-May your purse always hold a coin or two-May the sun always shine on your windowpane- May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain-May the hand of a friend always be near you-May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you." Elda is here to stay overnight, on her way to fly South to be with her brand-new grandson.""

Dorothy F. Foster
The Noisesome Day, the Stilly Night (1973)

Dorothy F. Foster
Joseph (saintly), 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found coated newsprint
7 9/16 x 4 1/2 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster

“Awakening” not rude, 1970-1986

Ballpoint pen, colored pencil, and graphite on found newsprint

6 1/4 x 5 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
“Behold” Minetta, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and graphite on found newsprint
7 1/4 x 4 7/8 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
“Elements” no. 2, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found newsprint
6 3/8 x 5 1/2 inches

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Detail of Dorothy F. Foster, “Upstream” they ply the waters — to glad. Huss, 1970-1986, ballpoint pen on found newsprint, 4 1/2 x 5 3/4 inches.

Dorothy F. Foster
“Triptych” (Flaming youth!), 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and graphite on found magazine paper
4 1/2 x 6 1/16 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
“Upstream” they ply the waters — to glad. Huss, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found newsprint
4 1/2 x 5 3/4 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
“Robe” (velvet), 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen, colored pencil and graphite on found coated newsprint
6 7/8 x 6 3/4 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
“Stella” a hawk? no. a dove., 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and colored pencil on found magazine paper
4 7/8 x 5 1/4 inches

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An image of artist Dorothy F. Foster with her sister, Muriel, standing in front of a car in 1928.

Dorothy F. Foster with her sister, Muriel, 1928.

Dorothy F. Foster
Action Packed, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and colored pencil on found newsprint
7 3/4 x 6 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
April in Paris, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and colored pencil on found newsprint
5 x 6 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
“gold” – the avid guest, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and graphite on found magazine paper
5 3/8 x 5 1/4 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
“Inlet” from Sea, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found magazine paper
5 3/4 x 4 1/2 inches

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Detail of Dorothy F. Foster, “gold” – the avid guest, 1970-1986, ballpoint pen and graphite on found magazine paper, 5 3/8 x 5 1/4 inches.

Dorothy F. Foster
Calla Lily, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and colored pencil on found paper
4 1/4 x 2 3/4 inches

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A work by Dorothy F. Foster titled 'Crossing (Mulberry + Grand Sts)' which uses ballpoint pen on found magazine paper to depict two female faces, one with teeth, a goose and some fish.

Dorothy F. Foster
Crossing (Mulberry + Grand Sts), 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and colored pencil on found magazine paper
5 x 4 1/2 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
April Showers, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and graphite on found newsprint
6 x 6 1/4 inches

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A work by Dorothy F. Foster titled 'Augusta' which uses ballpoint bed on found magazine paper to depict two female faces, one with teeth, a goose and some fish.

Dorothy F. Foster
Augusta, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen, colored pencil, and graphite on found newsprint
5 1/4 x 4 inches

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“He who hesistates is . . . take the plunge,
     bite off a piece, lift the 
Clay of man . . . mold . . . what isn’t now
     will be . . . lighter, much . . .
Feather-light-soft to the touch,
     downy-down . . . clowns around the
Live long . . . smiles grow, expand,
     stretch across the way from
Here to there . . . you are not so, not,
     so, far . . . mind me
When I call you . . . hear me . . . come,
     come right away.”

–Dorothy F. Foster, Soliloquy (1975)

 

Dorothy F. Foster
Houseboat, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and graphite on found newsprint
6 x 4 1/4 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster's work titled 'Praire' which features fish, and gnomes over a sunny landscape drawn in ballpoint ink on found magazine paper.

Dorothy F. Foster
Praire, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found magazine paper
4 7/8 x 5 9/16 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster's work titled 'Shell' which features ducks, gnomes and fish drawn in ballpoint ink on found magazine paper.

Dorothy F. Foster
Shell, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and graphite on found magazine paper
4 1/4 x 4 7/8 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster's work titled 'Sleepless' which features faces and gnomes drawn in ballpoint ink on found magazine paper.

Dorothy F. Foster
Sleepless, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen, colored pencil, and graphite on found coated newsprint
5 1/4 x 7 3/4 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster's work titled 'Tuesday’s Child' which features an illustration of women and what resembles garden gnomes.

Dorothy F. Foster
Tuesday’s Child, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen and graphite on found newsprint
5 1/2 x 4 3/4 inches

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Detail of Dorothy F. Foster, The Noisesome Day, the Stilly Night (1973).

A work by Dorothy F. Foster titled 'Door-bell' which uses ballpoint pen on found magazine paper to depict a door left ajar and a number of gnomes hiding between the cracks, one of which is holding a wreath.

Dorothy F. Foster
Door-bell, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found magazine paper
5 7/8 x 5 3/8 inches

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A work by Dorothy F. Foster titled 'Footlights–Always an Ingenue typed' which uses ballpoint pen on found magazine paper to depict two women's faces and a series of gnomes below them, and a child's face stored in an egg like shape on the right-hand side.

Dorothy F. Foster
Footlights-Always an Ingenue typed, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found coated newsprint
5 3/8 x 5 7/8 inches

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A work by Dorothy F. Foster titled 'Green Thumb' which uses ballpoint pen and graphite on found magazine paper to depict a child staring down at a group of gnomes.

Dorothy F. Foster
Green Thumb, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found magazine paper
5 3/4 x 4 3/4 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
Peak Performance, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen on found magazine paper
4 7/8 x 3 1/2 inches

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Installation view by Cary Whittier.

A work by Dorothy F. Foster titled 'Leonora' which features a woman staring straight on with heavy blue eye make up, drawn with ballpoint ink on found magazine paper.

Dorothy F. Foster
Leonora, 1970–1986
Ballpoint pen on found magazine paper
4 1/16 × 4 7/8 inches

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Dorothy F. Foster
Perfect Fit, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen, colored pencil, and graphite on found coated newsprint
3 1/2 x 2 3/4 inches

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“The work cannot be deciphered, but it is fun to try. Even as they defy context, Foster’s untethered fairytales captivate.”

–Emily B. Schilling, Raw Vision

Dorothy F. Foster's work titled 'Tug at Heartstrings' is a small image taken from found newspaper with illustrations over it using ballpoint pen, colored pencil and graphite.

Dorothy F. Foster
Tug at Heartstrings, 1970-1986
Ballpoint pen, colored pencil, and graphite on found newsprint
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

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Press Release

Dorothy F. Foster

The Stilly Night

June 8–July 28, 2023

 

Memory is a locket that holds the loved face. Sometimes it opens, then I gaze and remember, until it clicks shut.

 –Dorothy F. Foster

Little is known about Dorothy F. Foster’s work. Clues abound, but the true meaning behind her enigmatic drawings remains a mystery. Rendered in ballpoint pen on newspaper clippings, the works are innately regenerative; Foster coaxed anonymous faces from the contours of found imagery, introducing brightly dressed creatures and patterns to complete each scene. They divulge the artist’s sensitivity and openness to the unknown, yet their exact significance remains obscure. What these strange characters and abstractions represent may only be understood through Foster’s breadcrumb trail––playful titles, poetry, recurring themes––and one’s own intuition.

Foster’s autobiography, The Noisesome Day, the Stilly Night (1973), is one such clue, haphazardly chronicling birthdays, arguments, urban life, and a sister’s potential clairvoyance. It leaps from the steady and pleasant quotidian to profound reflection. Thoughts inevitably arrive and pass. The book is likely named after Thomas Moore’s Oft, in the Stilly Night (Scotch Air) (1850), a poem grieving the impermanence of life and longing for moments past: “Thus, in the stilly night, / Ere slumber’s chain has bound me, / Sad memory brings the light / Of other days around me.” Touched by this sort of melancholy yet not overwhelmed by it, Foster’s drawings balance an unsettling darkness with playful mystery. Foster’s writing, too, urges an acceptance of endings: “With the passage of time I wonder why we turn away. Even change, changes…white bones merge with brown earth. Hands in quest of life plunge deep into decay.”

Despite their palette, Foster’s drawings leave room for lightheartedness. Many of the figures possess a sweetness, gentle in their elliptical journeys. Some drawings indicate multiple planes: Crossing (Mulberry + Grand Sts) refers to an intersection in New York, yet the articulation of its ethereal pedestrians suggest another realm; Sleepless evokes a busy crowd or perhaps the mind of a single dreamer. Others possess a strong sense of longing, or a fondness for a certain place or habit. Almost all are framed in gleaming black borders reminiscent of a curtain-lined stage, where figures in pointy hats appear as both subject and visual motif. Overlapping shadows suggest multiple doorways, guiding the viewer somewhere dark and alluring. Blurred apparitions embrace; rich reds and greens glow like sun pouring through stained glass. Their design culminates in cryptic memories, lucid but for their undeniable fantasy. 

Born in Jersey City in 1903, Foster and her two younger sisters grew up in a Manhattan transformed by the Roaring Twenties, the arrival of Art Deco, and the strains of the Second World War. After studying art and interior design at the Cooper Union, Foster began her career as a textile designer, painting and writing poetry in her free time. In retirement she continued her practice, creating hundreds of drawings and poems, including the autobiographical log of one year in New York: The Noisesome Day, the Stilly Night. The drawings presented here were created in her final years, only exhibited after her death in 1986.

With special thanks to Claire Iltis and Fleisher Ollman.

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