The Beauty of Still Life – Deadline Extended!
We have some good news for all the artists who have been meaning to submit their work to The Beauty of Still Life but needed just a little more time.
Because of the wonderful response we have received to this exhibition, we have decided to extend the submission deadline to August 30, 2026.
So, if you have had a still life sitting in your studio that you kept thinking, maybe I should submit this, this is your chance. If you have been planning to create something for the theme but ran out of time, you have a little more room now. And if you only recently discovered the exhibition, we would love to see what you create.
There is something special about still life. It asks us to stop and look at things we usually move past without thinking: a bowl of fruit, a vase of flowers, an old book, a glass catching the afternoon light, a table set for a meal, or an object that has quietly stayed with us for years.
Sometimes the most ordinary things hold the most beautiful stories.
What Is Still Life?
The genre traditionally focuses on inanimate objects, often arranged deliberately within a composition. Flowers, fruit, food, vessels, books, fabrics and everyday belongings have all found their way into still-life paintings throughout art history. But still life has never really been only about objects.
It is also about what those objects can mean.
A bowl of fruit can speak about abundance. Wilted flowers can remind us of time passing. A treasured belonging can carry memories of a person or place. An empty table can suggest absence, while a carefully arranged collection of ordinary objects can tell us something about the person who chose them.
Artists throughout history have found endless possibilities in this seemingly quiet genre. Caravaggio brought dramatic realism and theatrical light to his still-life subjects. Rachel Ruysch became celebrated for her intricate and richly detailed floral compositions. Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin found poetry in humble domestic objects, often turning simple arrangements into deeply contemplative paintings.
Centuries later, artists continued to reinvent what still life could be. Paul Cézanne explored form, colour and perspective through his repeated paintings of apples and other everyday objects. Vincent van Gogh found expressive possibilities in flowers and simple arrangements, while Henri Matisse used still life as a space for bold colour, pattern and experimentation. Georgia O’Keeffe, too, showed how close observation of flowers and natural forms could become something much more personal and abstract.
And that is what makes still life so enduring. It can be quiet or dramatic. Realistic or abstract. Traditional or completely unexpected.
It can be about what is sitting on the table in front of you, or about everything that object represents.
Our Vision for the Theme
The Beauty of Still Life invites artists to explore the extraordinary beauty, meaning and stories that can be found within ordinary things.
We wanted this theme to remain open because still life does not have to look one particular way. Your interpretation might be a traditional arrangement of flowers and fruit, a collection of objects that carries personal meaning, a study of light and texture, or an entirely contemporary exploration of form and composition.
You might be drawn to the beauty of ceramics, glassware, books, textiles or plants. You might want to explore domestic life, memory, identity, ritual, consumption or sustainability. You might simply want to paint something beautiful because, sometimes, beauty itself is reason enough to look closely.
We are interested in the stories behind the objects as much as the objects themselves.
A still life can preserve a fleeting moment. It can remember a person. It can document a home, a culture or a particular time in our lives. It can turn something familiar into something we have never quite seen before.
You may explore:
- Floral and botanical compositions
- Fruit, food and everyday objects
- Ceramics, glassware, books and treasured possessions
- Domestic interiors and table settings
- Personal collections and meaningful objects
- Symbolic and conceptual still life
- Contemporary interpretations of traditional still life
- Abstract explorations of objects, form and composition
Most importantly, we want to see your way of looking.
Whether your work is richly detailed or beautifully minimal, rooted in realism or abstraction, traditional or experimental, we invite you to use still life as a starting point for your own visual language.
Artists working in painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, printmaking, digital art, collage, mixed media, textile art and experimental practices are all encouraged to submit.
At its core, The Beauty of Still Life is an invitation to slow down. To notice the things that are already around us. To look at an ordinary object for a little longer and wonder what it might have to say.
Who Can Apply?
Applications are open to women artists and non-binary artists aged 18 and above from anywhere in the world.
We welcome artists at every stage of their creative journey. You may be submitting to a virtual exhibition for the first time, or you may already have years of exhibitions and professional experience behind you. Either way, we would love to see your interpretation of The Beauty of Still Life.
Artists working across visual art mediums are invited to apply, including:
- Painting
- Drawing
- Photography
- Sculpture
- Printmaking
- Illustration
- Digital Art
- Mixed Media
- Textile Art
- Collage
- Contemporary and Experimental Practices
There is no single style we are looking for. Traditional compositions, contemporary approaches, minimalist studies, abstract interpretations, symbolic works and conceptual explorations are all welcome.
Your still life might feature flowers, food, domestic objects, ceramics, books, personal belongings or something completely unexpected.
What matters most is the perspective you bring to it.
How Does It Work?
Ready to share your work with us? Here are the application options for The Beauty of Still Life.
Virtual Exhibition — $15 USD
Your application includes:
- Submission of up to 3 artworks for consideration
- Inclusion in the juried selection process
- Opportunity to be featured in the international virtual exhibition if selected
- Professional online presentation of selected artwork
- Digital certificate of participation for selected artists
Optional Artist Interview Feature — $19 USD
Artists who choose the Artist Interview Add-On and are selected will receive a dedicated interview published on the Women in Arts Network website.
It is an opportunity to share more than just the finished work: your artistic practice, creative process, inspirations and the story behind the work.
The feature also provides additional visibility through our digital platforms and creates a permanent online feature that can be shared as part of your portfolio, website, CV, grant applications or professional profile.
Choose Your Participation
Option 1: Virtual Exhibition Only — $15 USD
Option 2: Virtual Exhibition + Artist Interview Feature — $34 USD
Whichever option you choose, your work will be considered for The Beauty of Still Life, an international virtual exhibition celebrating the beauty, symbolism and many contemporary possibilities of this enduring genre.
Please note that application fees are non-refundable and support the administration, review, curation, exhibition development and promotion of the opportunity. Submission and payment do not guarantee selection.
We Can’t Wait to See Your Take on Still Life
Still life has spent centuries reminding us that there is beauty in paying attention.
A flower does not have to be rare to be worth painting. A cup does not have to be precious to hold a memory. A collection of everyday objects can become a portrait of a life without showing a single person.
That is the beauty of still life: the ordinary becomes worth looking at again.
And now, we want to see what you notice.
If you have been waiting for the right moment to submit, consider this your extra little window. The deadline has been extended, and we would love to discover the objects, colours, memories and stories that make your interpretation of still life uniquely yours.
Submit your work to The Beauty of Still Life by August 30, 2026.
We can’t wait to see the world through your eyes.
