Still Life by Various Canadian Artists

 Still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or man-made (drinking glasses, instruments, books, vases, jewelry, coins, pipes, etc.).

Why is it called a still life?

The term for Still Life in French is nature morte, which means “dead nature”. In Italian, it translates to natura morta, which also means “dead nature”. The very definition of still life then suggests something without life, without movement – an inanimate object.

The goal of a still life composition is to direct the viewer’s eye through a painting and lead them toward what the artist thinks is important.