Live Still Life

A traditional still life made with modern technology

In the 17th century, a still life was meant to show your wealth by having paintings of products from all over the world. In the current globalised world, this is nothing special anymore. The Live Still Life explores how we can create this same feeling of luxury using today’s technology. The work is a live stream of a still life composition with real fruit, with a curator who replaces decaying fruit every week. The work shows the transcience of life, while at the same time creating an eternal digital artefact.

Live Still Life by VOUW Studio

Live streamed from anywhere

The streaming station is where the Live Still Life is streamed from. Years before there were streaming apps, a custom computer was created with a camera module to stream the image of the still life to a custom webpage. As a reference to the ancient routes of trade, the work was installed in Bangalore, the tech capital of India.

Live Still Life by VOUW Studio Twitter
Live Still Life by VOUW Studio

A quiet intruder

At some point fruit started to disappear. On the linked twitter account we finally found the thief.

A traditional painting using today’s techniques

The Live Still Life can be linked privately to a framed display, giving the work the same feeling as a still life used to have in the 17th century.

Live Still Life Depot - VOUW Studio

The Still Life Depot

Every Live Still Life is unique with it’s own unique ID and composition. This means that for every edition a new station is set up. This will result in a large space where all Live Still Life’s are stored and maintained.