Enfilade

From ArtHist.net:

The Shape of Things: Still Life in Britain
Pallant House Gallery, Chichester, 27–28 September 2024

Proposals due by 31 May 2024

This summer, Pallant House Gallery presents The Shape of Things: Still Life in Britain (11 May – 20 October), a major exhibition exploring the continuing and fundamental relevance of the genre of still life to British art and art history. Historically still life has been viewed as the lowest genre of art, but in fact it has been employed by leading British artists to grapple with some of the most profound themes relating to the human condition, and as a vehicle for experimentation with new forms and ideas. In keeping with Pallant House Gallery’s mission to explore new perspectives on British art from 1900 to now, the exhibition demonstrates how artists working in the 20th and 21st centuries have continually reimagined traditional still life. It questions how still life has been used to explore themes such as mortality and loss, fecundity and love, the uncanny and subconscious, the domestic environment and questions of gender, abundance and waste. Today these themes also extend to climate change and to the legacy of colonialism and empire.

Starting with the introduction of still life in Britain by émigré artists in the 17th century, the exhibition reveals how modern and contemporary artists have engaged with and reinterpreted traditional art history. It then presents a history of modern and contemporary British art as understood through the lens of the still life, showing how the genre sits at the heart of groups and movements including the Bloomsbury Group, Scottish Colourists, Seven & Five Society, Unit One, Surrealism, St Ives and post-war abstraction, Neo-romanticism, pop art, post-war figurative art, conceptual art, and the YBAs. Encompassing painting, prints, photography, sculpture, and installation, The Shape of Things: Still Life in Britain includes over 150 works by more than 100 leading artists working in Britain. The exhibition is accompanied by a site-specific installation by Phoebe Cummings.

This symposium will seek to draw out connections between historic and contemporary art, and will provide an opportunity to further explore key themes in the exhibition. The keynote lecture will be delivered by a leading British artist. The two sessions will include papers by art historians and curators concerning artists and themes in historic, modern, and contemporary British art, and artists talking about themes in their work.

We seek contributions that investigate, though are not limited to:
• the reinterpretation and renewal of this traditional genre
• the exploration of gender identity through still life
• how the world’s underlying uncertainties are expressed through a genre traditionally perceived as domestic
• still life as an art form that goes beyond reality to explore symbolism, the sub-conscious, and the uncanny
• the connections between still life and global commerce and its connections to colonialism and the British Empire
• the contribution of émigré and Diaspora artists to the enduring significance of the genre
• still life as a site for the exploration of materiality

To be considered as a speaker, please send an abstract of up to 400 words to curatorial@pallant.org.uk, including your name, affiliation, contact details (phone number and email address), and a short biography with details of any recent publications. The deadline for submissions is 31 May 2024 (12pm). We will aim to contact successful candidates by Monday, 1 July.

The symposium has been generously supported by the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art. Speakers will be paid a fee of £150. Speakers will be able to claim travel expenses (up to £100) and accommodation costs (up to £100) for the Friday evening. There will be no delegate fee for speakers. Delegate tickets will be £50 full price (£30 for students) and will include refreshments and lunch. Tickets will go on sale via the Pallant House Gallery website nearer the time of the conference.