Silent Still

Silent Still is a solo exhibition by Zoë Sua Kay at [A]-Space Gallery in Lisbon, which I curated. Hyperreal close-ups of olive leaves, bougainvillea and resin explore the fragile balance between the resilience of nature and human disruption.

About Silent Still

The exhibition ran from 7 to 30 November 2024, as part of the ERGO Anthroposcene programme of [A]-Space Gallery. It had four components, each one a different look into the intimacy of nature.

Orcus, a series in oil on canvas, studies resin at microscopic scale, its amber tones and swirling textures. Resin is both a preserver and a betrayer of nature. The Bougainvillea diptych, the Oliveira series and a large painting of a pink veined leaf look at plants in extreme close-up.

The exhibition does not raise its voice. It invites the viewer to slow down and notice the quiet warning that nature keeps sending.

Read the full text in Zoë Sua Kay curated by Andrei Fășie, Silent Still exhibition and an earlier conversation with the artist in Zoe Sua Kay, A Margem.

Works in Silent Still

Curatorial text

A Fragile Eternity

Silent Still is a meditation on the delicate tension between creation and destruction, stillness and turmoil. Through the fluidity of resin, which is the main subject of the exhibition —both a preserver and betrayer of nature—the works evoke an elemental quiet, yet beneath the surface lies a haunting, inevitable disquiet. With microscopic studies of the amber tones and swirling textures we are drawn into the eternal pause between natural preservation and industrial consumption.

Silent Still beckons viewers to confront the unsettling silence of a world on the edge, questioning what remains when nature’s whispers are no longer heard, but still felt.

We are already witnessing the dire consequences of our mindless consumption, a relentless focus driven by the immediate rewards of extracting what we desire from the Earth, with little regard for the cost. In our obsession with exploitation, we continually devise new and efficient ways to strip resources from the planet, as if they are inexhaustible. Yet, this short-sighted pursuit ignores the very real wounds we are inflicting upon the natural world—a world that sustains us. The ecosystem, once resilient, is now showing signs of fracture and collapse under the strain of humanity’s unchecked greed, and it seems to be crumbling beneath our feet, inch by inch, as we erode the foundation upon which all life depends.

Through the 4 components of this exhibition hosted by [A]-Space Gallery in Lisbon, we invite viewers to journey into nature’s intimacy, peeling back layers to reveal its profound complexity and fragility. Each piece serves as both a remembrance of our shared origins and a subtle, yet urgent, warning. These works are a quiet call to mindfulness, reminding us of the immediate dangers that loom closer each day. In engaging with the art, we are prompted to reflect on our role, to recognize the fragile beauty of the natural world, and to awaken to the responsibility that comes with being its custodian. This exhibition does not shout its message but whispers it—an invitation to pause, listen, and heed the silent warning that nature has been sending us all along.

Press and links

• [A]-Space Gallery, ERGO Anthroposcene, Silent Still
• arte et facta, Zoë Sua Kay curated by Andrei Fășie, Silent Still exhibition

Artist: Zoë Sua Kay
Organiser: [A]-Space Gallery