Moments in Time

The central concept in my still life paintings is that of 'the art of silence' and finding beauty in the 'small things'. My aim, to capture a moment in time, a fragile flower, leaf or fruit before its inevitable deterioration and ultimate decay. The emphasis on light exaggerates the beauty and pathos of the moment and its inevitable passage into shadow. The translation of that image onto canvas allows it to be held and observed in silence. Julie Davidson, 2021

Catalogue Essay by Marguerite Brown 2021

“To see the world in a grain of sand and a heaven in a wild flower hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour” William Blake, Auguries of Innocence

Art can play a special role in our lives by showing us the beauty and meaning in things that might be otherwise overlooked. Just as the lines above by William Blake elevate the ordinary to the divine, so too does the work of Julie Davidson. This Melbourne based artist takes simple objects and plant life and through her exacting technique and skilful use of light, composition and perspective, transforms them into something profound.

During the long days of lockdown in Melbourne, Davidson took to carrying a pair of secateurs on her daily walks. Branches overhanging the footpath were considered fair game should they catch her eye, and as a consequence there is nothing particularly exotic about the persimmons, loquats, tulips, magnolias and other readily grown suburban fruit and flowers that grace her new series of paintings. Similarly, her choice of vessels range from hand crafted pots by a local ceramicist, to inexpensive chinoiserie style bowls and domestic brass dishes from India. This eclectic mix of common household objects reflects her multicultural interests and perhaps bowerbird tendencies to gather visually interesting pieces for future paintings. It is her skilled application of the formal properties of picture-making which give this ordinary stuff transcendent qualities on the canvas. In her series First Light, Last Light and Gone Tomorrow, Davidson paints tulips in different stages of growth and decay creating visually dramatic explorations of temporal reality. Alluding to historical vanitas traditions of Dutch and Flemish still life paintings which served to remind the viewer of the transience of life itself, these works also reveal the artist’s flair for visual drama. Gloriously rendered petals appear illuminated from within as they emerge from smoky dark backgrounds to consume the picture plane. In a further reference to another time, these works have been painted on circular canvases and covered in a high gloss resin to evoke the rounded glass domes that were traditionally used in taxidermy practices and the preservation of specimens. Similarly, Davidson captures a moment in nature destined to fade and suspends it in time through the act of painting. 

Along with the harmonious intersection of culture and nature seen in Davidson’s representation of made vessels and their organic contents, there is a third player. The element of light elevates this series to the realm of the sublime. Reflected off the gleaming surfaces of glazed ceramic vases, suffused through semi-translucent petals, or sharply delineating the curve of fruit, branch and leaf, Davidson’s application of light is almost cinematic in effect. While defining form, light is also used to create evocative atmospherics that contribute to the different mood seen in each work. Some paintings feature sparkling light dappled across background drapery conveying the bright warmth of a domestic interior, as opposed to the dark, void-like background in others from which shapes emerge with sharp clarity and striking optical impact. 

Regardless of treatment, the transcendent quality of light and its spiritual associations with the cosmos and beyond is allowed great depth of contemplation in these works. Through Davidson’s choice of simple subject matter, she brings into focus the wonder that can be found in the surrounding world if we simply slow down enough to see it.