Principle Gallery | 3/17-4/17 | Alexandria, VA

A Fresh Take

Approximately eight artists present a fresh, new take on the still life genre, hosted at Principle Gallery.

Principle Gallery in Alexandria, Virginia, honors the still life genre in its upcoming group show Still Fresh. While the gallery notes that they are indeed celebrating the history of the genre, dating back the 16th and 17th-centuries in the Netherlands, they’re also showcasing the genres evolution, as it’s seen today. The show will feature around 30 artworks of eight artists that are keeping still life “fresh” by offering new perspectives.

“The artists we’ve selected for this exhibition are creators that approach still life in a unique and comprehensive manner—proving there isn’t only one way to make a still life,” expresses Principle Gallery assistant director Taylor Chauncey. “An idea that can translate to all forms of art.”Edward Praybe, Orange Teapot, oil on canvas, 30 x 24"

Beginning with artist Jacob Pfeiffer, we see works like Crab Apple, one of four paintings he will have for the show. The piece depicts a highly realistic scene involving a crab leg on a string, hovering above an apple, bringing a humorous tone to still life. “In this new batch of oil paintings, I have continued to explore the intersection of meticulously crafted paintings with playful/whimsical subject matter,” he explains. “I love incorporating visual puns and word play into my oil paintings. I found the crab claw on Tybee Island beach in Georgia, and immediately knew it had to be in a painting. Pairing it with an apple created the visual pun…It’s also a silly take on the theme of the show. The apple is freshly picked, but the amputated crab claw is quite the opposite!”Jacob Pfeiffer, Crab Apple, oil on panel, 12 x 6"Artist Anna Wypych, known for her “portraits of emotions and ideas” and portraying the human condition, showcases themes of eroticism in her show work. In Touching Play, we see two fingers grasping onto a pink rose within a bouquet. “I was painting a lot of nudes before, but to show a more erotic mood, I use flowers,” notes the artist. “I like this way of sharing a warm atmosphere without being too much. Flowers are perfect for this. Suggestive, but soft and delicate, with class." Wypych will have other works in the show that also combine roses, hands and even fire—a symbolically rich element—to indicate a feminine point of view.Elizabeth Floyd, Mixed Peonies in Ginger Jar, oil on panel, 12 x 12"

Michael T. Davis, Colette’s Curiosity, oil on board, 14 x 11"

Elizabeth Floyd will also feature flowers, seen prominently in her oil painting Mixed Peonies in Ginger Jar. “My work is always full of flowers. I love growing them and I feel as if they are intimate friends. In the paintings for this show, I am continuing to explore a life filled with flowers and the items that help you feel comfortable and at home,” Floyd says. “Mixed peonies is a composition of the last peonies from my yard last year. I gathered the last blooms together and arranged them in one of my favorite antique ginger jars. [My] paintings in the show represent the seasons of the year: peonies to represent spring, lilies for summer, a few still life’s of autumnal leaves to celebrate the fall, and a painting of Amaryllis which represents the winter, as these are the flowers I grow in the gray days of January.”Larry Preston, Two Pears on a Box, oil on panel, 10 x 8"

For artist Edmond Praybe, his working methods ensure a type of overall freshness to his paintings. “I tend to rework and change my paintings quite a bit during the process…,” he says. “I change both my still life arrangements and the corresponding paintings frequently as I work to resolve a piece. This keeps individual parts of the paintings from becoming overworked and full of extraneous detail, which keeps things feeling fresh and alive.”Anna Wypych, Touching Play, oil on panel, 8 x 10"For his show piece Orange Teapot, Praybe explains, “The main object—the teapot itself—belonged to my wife’s grandmother…I wanted to find a way to highlight the teapot’s intense enamel coloring and sturdy, robust form, so I juxtaposed the complementary colored and textured object of a folded blue silk shirt in the composition. I added in other supporting objects as visual counterpoints of shape, color, pattern, etc., in order to find a balance…In this way, I hoped to give the teapot a new home, a new life and context within the world of the painting—a fresh take.”