Broadsheet Melbourne Change City

Food & Drink Nightlife Fashion Art & Entertainment Events Visitors News

Arts & Entertainment

Anna Krien

Benjamin Law

Geoff Lemon

Lorelei Vashti

< >

The Best Things in Life Aren’t Things by Tai Snaith

For her new show at Helen Gory Galerie, artist Tai Snaith asked eight writers to describe one thing they would grab from their burning house in a fire, and then she drew them.

By Anna Metcalfe, 28th June 2011

Text size

hat would be the one thing you would grab in a fire? What is the object you hold most dear? These are the questions Melbourne artist Tai Snaith asked eight writers to respond to for her solo show, The Best Things in Life Aren’t Things. She then drew these objects, based solely on the writers' descriptions. This exhibition pairs the texts and drawings side by side.

Writers including Anna Krien, Alicia Sometimes, Lorelei Vashti and Benjamin Law wrote of objects with little monetary value – a torn party dress, an asthma pump, an empty jewellery box – that are priceless for sentimental reasons and because of the powerful memories they evoke.

Across each of the works, Snaith explores our relationship with objects, the way an object can be “imbued with a certain power, even a soul”, and our attachment to these irreplaceable personal icons.

Snaith sees the process of drawing an object based solely on a writer’s description as like “what happens in your imagination when you read a novel and imagine the characters’ houses, hairstyles and accents…it is more saturated than it actually would be, and more surreal”. Her drawings explore this interplay between artist and writer, between drawing and text, between fiction and reality.

The Best Things in Life Aren't Things opens tomorrow, June 29, at Helen Gory Galerie, Prahran. It runs until July 23.

helengory.com

more in Arts & Entertainment

next-article-title

2889

5303 A Visit to the Embassy: The Greater Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/visit-embassy-greater-asian-co-prosperity-sphere /media/images/2012/05/17/GACPS1_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5284 Love and Business /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/love-and-business /media/images/2012/05/15/BS_9RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5286 Swoon Worthy /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/swoon-worthy /media/images/2012/05/15/swoon-12_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5266 Nanna Ditzel in the Sydney Opera House /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/nanna-ditzel-sydney-opera-house /media/images/2012/05/14/120222_GD_CWF_119_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5278 Shane Cotton’s Smoking Gun /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/shane-cottons-smoking-gun /media/images/2012/05/14/COTTON_2012_White-Hand_300RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5197 On the Garage Sale Trail /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/garage-sale-trail /media/images/2012/05/04/Screen_Shot_2012-05-02_at_3.49.26_PM_png_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5201 Ten at the Wheeler Centre /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/ten-wheeler-centre /media/images/2012/05/04/Eugenides-credit-Ricardo-BarrosRESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5181 A Shifting Landscape /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/shifting-landscape /media/images/2012/05/03/OLYMPISCHE_STADION_1663_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5144 Group Work – Turning the Everyday into Something Beautiful /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/group-work-turning-everyday-something-beautiful /media/images/2012/04/26/Anna_Varendorff_Cutlery_JPG_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5135 Enter the Fuguestate /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/enter-fuguestate /media/images/2012/04/24/Fuguestate_JPG_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5141 Vision in Motion /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/vision-motion /media/images/2012/04/24/MUMA_Jubelin_box_seidler_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5120 Kinfolk Volume Three /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/kinfolk-volume-three /media/images/2012/04/23/Kathrin_Koschitzki_01RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5121 Carbon Festival 2012 /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/carbon-festival-2012 /media/images/2012/04/23/Yimmy-Yayo-Web-Work-01-929x615_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5114 Record Store Day /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/record-store-day /media/images/2012/04/20/Crate_Diggers-20_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5117 Modern Times Strikes Again /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/modern-times-strikes-again /media/images/2012/04/20/ModernTimes_14a_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5098 A Pixelated Universe at Odessa /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/pixelated-universe-odessa /media/images/2012/04/19/Code2TinEd_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5104 Abbotsford Club Craft and Food Fair /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/abbotsford-club-craft-and-food-fair /media/images/2012/04/19/4205fa36-856f-11e1-aedd-12313d1a5d3c_original_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5087 The Quiet Wild by Jacqui Stockdale /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/quiet-wild-jacqui-stockdale /media/images/2012/04/18/Jacqui-Stockdale-2012-RamaJaara-the-Royal-Shepherdess_RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5080 The Best Seat in the House /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/best-seat-house /media/images/2012/04/17/Thonet-5_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5081 Peter McIntyre: Optimistic and Experimental Design /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/peter-mcintyre-optimistic-and-experimental-design /media/images/2012/04/17/Sea_House_2_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5052 Incu Edition – The Career Issue /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/incu-edition-career-issue /media/images/2012/04/13/Incu_Edition_Issue3_4_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5055 Owl Know How /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/owl-know-how /media/images/2012/04/13/cast_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5063 Splitting the Image /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/splitting-image /media/images/2012/04/13/Challenger_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5047 The Everleigh Gallery /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/everleigh-gallery /media/images/2012/04/12/max500_UNTITLED_4_2012_150x120cmRESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5048 Artists Go Back to the Cutting Board /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/artists-go-back-cutting-board /media/images/2012/04/12/Stuart_Ringholt_Circles_Passing_Page_43RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5026 If the World Made Sense /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/if-world-made-sense /media/images/2012/04/10/BenAshtonBell_ExhibitionHero_RGB_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5028 Aesop and A.P.C.'s Post-Poo Drops /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/aesop-and-pcs-post-poo-drops /media/images/2012/04/12/AESOP-OTHER-APC-POST-POO-DROPS-02_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5031 Hanging Out with Mister Moss /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/hanging-out-mister-moss /media/images/2012/04/10/Fluro-cyclamem-466x700RESIZE2_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

5006 Independent Photography Festival 2012 /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/independent-photography-festival-2012 /media/images/2012/04/04/1_LukeByrne_IPF2012_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4990 Dispatch from Tokyo: Ebony Bizys of Hello Sandwich /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/dispatch-tokyo-ebony-bizys-hello-sandwich /media/images/2012/04/02/IMG_9067RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4986 Catch the Paper Sea Quarterly Wave /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/catch-paper-sea-quarterly-wave /media/images/2012/03/30/1_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4979 TheSuperCool Helps Decorate Your Home /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/thesupercool-helps-decorate-your-home /media/images/2012/03/29/Thesupercool_J_Forsyth_4lr_JPG_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4975 Space Furniture Warehouse Sale /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/space-furniture-warehouse-sale /media/images/2012/03/29/Grande-Papilio_01RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4972 A Family Affair /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/family-affair /media/images/2012/03/28/Siggo-InSituIMG_6137_retouched_RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4964 Crazy yet Timeless at FurnID /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/crazy-yet-timeless-furnid /media/images/2012/03/27/GD_MF_208_rt_01_RGB_RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4965 What’s Your Ultimate One-Week Campervan Road Trip? /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/whats-your-ultimate-one-week-campervan-road-trip /media/images/2012/03/27/grub-food-truck-10_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4966 There Are No Strangers for Patricia Piccinini at Tolarno /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/there-are-no-strangers-patricia-piccinini-tolarno /media/images/2012/03/27/The-Student-2012-Installation-viewRESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4959 Wooden Shjips Set Sail /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/wooden-shjips-set-sail /media/images/2012/03/26/2011_11_Wooden_Shjips_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4960 Karen Woodbury Gallery Ups Stumps /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/karen-woodbury-gallery-ups-stumps /media/images/2012/03/26/04_2012_03_03_LARA_M5D3D5DRESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4949 Jiro Dreams of Sushi /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/jiro-dreams-sushi /media/images/2012/03/23/JIROWORKING_jpeg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4951 Go Back of House /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/go-back-house /media/images/2012/03/23/Momofuku_Ssam_Bar_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4946 Immersive Sensory and Spatial Environments at NEW12 /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/immersive-sensory-and-spatial-environments-new12 /media/images/2012/03/22/_MG_3345_A_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4926 The Return of Electrelane /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/return-electrelane /media/images/2012/03/20/QiAkEPj0RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4904 Midnight Sun Rises at Great Dane’s New Store in Fitzroy /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/midnight-sun-rises-great-danes-new-store-fitzroy /media/images/2012/03/16/_D5V8991_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4898 Grace Kelly is all Style and Grace in Bendigo /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/grace-kelly-all-style-and-grace-bendigo /media/images/2012/03/15/1_GraceKelly_195412_RESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4899 The Reclink Community Cup Plays in Sydney this Weekend /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/reclink-community-cup-plays-sydney-weekend /media/images/2012/03/15/001-PanoramicsRESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4888 Golden Plains Sixxx Wrap /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/golden-plains-sixxx-wrap /media/images/2012/03/14/golden_plains_11_of_20_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4880 Lawler Studio Season 2012 – Cultural, Accessible and Thirst Quenching /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/lawler-studio-season-2012-cultural-accessible-and-thirst-quenching /media/images/2012/03/13/T13_-_Earl_Carter_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4881 China’s Romeo & Juliet – The Peony Pavilion /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/chinas-romeo-juliet-peony-pavilion /media/images/2012/03/13/_G0N4717DOX_RAWRESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

4855 Speakeasy Cinema at The Richmond Weekender /melbourne/arts-and-entertainment/article/speakeasy-cinema-richmond-weekender /media/images/2012/03/08/chapter-06-copyRESIZE_jpg_94x66_crop_q85.jpg

Text size