Still Life by Amber Creswell Bell
Amber Creswell Bell’s fourth art book offers a deep delve into contemporary Australian artists working within the lens of still life.
Words: Emma-Kate Wilson
Tangerine Party, 2018. Artwork courtesy of the Egg & Dart Gallery. Photo: Mim Stirling
Bottle, Pear & Vase, 2001. Artwork courtesy of Angus McDonald. Photo: Jon Linkins
Everybody Talks in Their Sleep, 2016. Artwork courtesy of Julian Meagher. Photo: Mim Stirling
Casting a contemporary eye over the traditional practice of still life, Amber Creswell Bell presents her third book on Australian art.Following in the, now iconic, footsteps of Clay and A Painted Landscape, Still Life portrays a survey of the diversity within still life and how it can be as unique as each of the artists crafting their paintings.
As an art curator, Amber has long noticed the enthusiastic responses from audiences. ‘I felt a book such as this was well overdue!’ she remarks. The result is a (heavy) book to be poured over, repeatedly, for generations — pages well dog eared by students and art lovers, splatted with paint and coffee.
The passionate return to still life as a contemporary medium comes after years of modern art challenging the viewer or digital art that forces us to continue looking at the screens that consume our lives. However, as Still Life exposes, this visual language can still connect us with the simple elements of the everyday, pulling the viewer out of their bubble into dreamy nostalgia of an almost forgot moment.
From the graphic, light hues found within Julian Meagher’s romantic depiction of Australian iconography (such as VB cans and goon bags contrasted with wattle and gum leaves) or Bronte Leighton-Dore’s affectionate capturing of an artist/ florist’s daily routine. Yet, it is the composition and colour, the light and shadows, line and form that make these subjects special and unique.
Roses, 2015. Artwork courtesy of John Honeywill, Philip Bacon Galleries and Michael Reid Galler. Photo: Jon Linkins
Sunbeam Mixmaster, 2017. Artwork courtesy of Kate Waanders. Photo: Ben Waanders
“Art reflects back to us the society and environment that we live in, refracted through the minds and imaginations of a multitude of different artists. This book is a time capsule.”
Passionfruit and gingers, 2020. Artwork courtesy of Andrea Huelin and Michael Reid Gallery. Photo: Andrea Huelin
White Phalaenopsis Orchid, 2019. Artwork and photo courtesy of Tsering Hannaford.
For Amber, narrowing her selection was a challenging process. ‘Ultimately, I really wanted the book to be a true cross-section of what’s happening in still life within the contemporary Australian context,’ she reveals. ‘For the book to have substance, it had to have a diversity of artists, ages, career points, genders, muses, backgrounds and styles. Keeping this in mind at all times helped me decide on the final line up.’
Following the completion of the book, the writer and curator noticed a diversification in the composition of the still life artwork. ‘I think that people will often associate traditional still life with bowls of fruit, and vases of flowers,’ Amber adds. ‘But what this book does is beautifully demonstrates how the genre has evolved in the contemporary context.’
Seen consistently throughout art history, this genre provides a snapshot of contemporary life, and the preliminary success of Still Life reveals this genre is just as popular now as ever. In doing so, Still Life becomes a “commentary on the times” in a rejection of the digital online era, for an audience that craves the real, handcrafted, and physical remains.
Melons, 2012. Artwork courtesy of Angus McDonald. Photo: Nolan Verheji-Full
