Marnie White’s oil paintings examine the tradition of vanitas still life and their symbolic connection to our own mortality.

Championed by the painters of the 17th century Dutch Golden Age era, vanitas still life works historically invoked representations of skulls, food remains and wilted botanicals with luxurious items. Closely related to the visual trope of momento mori, these vanitas still life arrangements were created and captured in vivid detail to act as a symbolic reminder and warning against the glorification of material pleasures within the inherently transient and fragile nature of life.

Adopting the visual vocabulary of this rich aesthetic history, White paints her own vanitas still life arrangements through a contemporary lens.

Marnie White holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from OCAD University and has shown her work in exhibitions in Canada and the United States. She currently lives and works in Toronto, ON.