Antarctica from Above 1991

In this work, a massive body of water is dotted with large rocks and a few pieces of ice as the sun, low over the horizon, bathes the scene in streaks of blue and yellow. Although typical of the images McCarthy gravitated toward late in life—wide open expanses seen from an elevated vantage point—it has a haunting quality that is absent from her Arctic paintings. This sense may result from Antarctica having a much rockier geography than the Arctic during the warm months.

McCarthy had long expressed an interest in visiting the area and finally had the opportunity when she went on a tour organized by the American Museum of Natural History in early 1991—at the peak of summer. However, she was disappointed because the trip was plagued by poor weather and focused more on the wildlife than the scenery. Moreover, the ice floes in the south prevent visitors from getting close to the icebergs there. Still, she produced a substantial body of work that contrasts nicely with the Arctic pieces: the northern pieces tend to be brighter and the shapes more ethereal, in contrast to the overcast skies and darker rocks she encountered in the Antarctic.

At the time of year when McCarthy travelled, the Antarctic lacked the vast expanses of snowfields she might have expected, and this may have been a disappointment. The penguins obviously charmed her: a number of her paintings and sketches, such as Penguins Swimming, 1991, include these aquatic, flightless birds. Given that public attention began to be drawn to climate change in the early 1990s, it is possible that the causes of the increasing melting polar ice were also on McCarthy’s mind.

Antarctica from Above is the standout among McCarthy’s Antarctic works, capturing a dramatic moment of illumination from the sun as it rides above the horizon during the summer months, never setting, and with a hint of the curvature of the earth. It graced the cover of the catalogue for the McMichael Canadian Art Collection’s 1999 retrospective exhibition of McCarthy’s work. In May 2021, it fetched the highest auction price of any of her paintings, just over $190,000—a sign that McCarthy is finally gaining recognition in the art world.