Still life painting, alongside portrait and landscape, is one of the best-known and loved of all painting genres. Still Life – Reanimating the Inanimate celebrates the perseverance of the still life and its ever-relevant concern with human existence. These contemporary artists revisit the heart of the tradition, exploring ideas of stillness and movement, and the interactions between objects and people. All draw on historical art influences and expand on them with new media and new meaning.

The beauty of still life is that it captures the perishable, the fragile, and the transient. Whether depicting vibrant flowers, or a humble strand of Blu-tac, the works elevate their subject matter from its limited life span to become something that could outlive us all. Despite the inherent stillness that they share with their historic counterparts, these contemporary works show us that the genre itself is not static. With fresh eyes and contemporary approaches, the still life tradition is evolving.

Exhibiting artists include Jonathon Crowther, Donna Davis, Simon Degroot, Marian Drew, Robert Fenton, Peta Houghton, Stevan Jacks, Sam Leach, Cate Maddy, Sylvia McEwan, Deb Mostert, Laurie Mossuto, Gywn Hanssen Piggot, Victoria Reichelt, George Rowbottom, Emma Theyers, Seabastion Toast and Clare Toms. The official opening of the exhibit is on Friday September 9 at 6:30 pm, and the exhibit will run every day until November 2.