Contemporary - Fine Art Photography by Niki Hill

Each “Still Life” setting is made up of intricately constructed “Objet d’Art” that are researched with particular ideas in mind. 

In this project I fashion the still life subjects in the form of teapots, teacups and tiered plates from fresh flowers, vegetables, fish, animal skins and internal organs. Items are covered, stitched, moulded, and made to achieve the required look.  Finally, the scene is set on a black background and digitally photographed in my lighting studio. 

These visual vignettes take a fresh approach to the tradition of still-life paintings, which reflected the values of much earlier times; a simple group of objects from daily life, a bowl of fruit, a vase of flowers, celebrating the beauty of life’s abundance and indicating one’s wealth and position. A skull setting with a snuffed-out candle and timepieces warning of the transient nature of life and the importance of wise decision-making and prudent actions.

The work presented here, however, represents a contemporary approach to the Still Life genre, in which messages are nuanced and laden with the complexities of current cultural conversations, which blend traditional concerns with contemporary ideas and issues.

The High Tea theme is an ideal setting for the contemporary conversations that flow through my artwork. My cultural heritage is from colonial European settlers to New Zealand during Victorian times. These images reference the British genteel feminine tradition of afternoon tea with a bizarre surrealist twist. Art movements, the fairy tale genre, the poetry of spiritual love, conservation, scandal, and environmental concerns all inspire my ideas.