All Glass

Michael Reid Northern Beaches is delighted to present the latest solo exhibition from celebrated contemporary painter and National Emerging Art Prize winner Sophie Sachs. Titled All Glass, the Meanjin/Brisbane-based artist’s luminous new series is a beautifully realised exploration of light’s evanescent qualities and the delicate, serendipitous optical effects produced by light’s intersections with glass.

“These compositions always feature direct sunlight, as the shadows play an equally important role in the arrangement as the objects themselves,” says Sachs, who worked as a lead designer with Urban Art Projects in public art for five years after completing a Master of Architecture at the University of Queensland and now, since winning NEAP’s top honour, has devoted herself to full-time art practice.

“Each work references the still-life genre through the use of familiar and commonplace objects. However, the focus of my work is on capturing the optical effects of light and conveying the fleeting nature of the present moment.”

Sachs’s architectural training is evident in her work’s sense of order, which is appealing juxtaposed with sunlight’s ephemeral, unexpected effects – its dynamic pattern play, refracted colour and dancing shadows. This interplay between order and chance is echoed in her mix of precise figuration and backgrounds consisting of ambiguous pools of colour, freeing her compositions from the realm of domestic interiors and moving towards something abstract.

With All Glass, each painting is developed and experienced in two stages. “There is the overall sense of light and colour, which can be perceived at a glance,” says Sachs. “Then, there is the detail that is experienced at a much more intimate scale. My paintings do not seek to be extremely realistic. Rather, I selectively highlight details that inspire and interest me while allowing other elements to become more stylised and retain a painterly quality.”

To enquire about available works from All Glass by Sophie Sachs or sign up for early access to her upcoming releases, please email northernbeaches@michaelreid.com.au