About this Event
Big Beautiful Still Lives – Still life meets life drawing
Presented by Chris Mason, Rakhi James, Oscar Donati, Marcel Cooper, and Arts Project Australia
Date: Sunday 22nd February 2026, 2:00pm -4:00pm
Venue: Arts Project Australia Studio, Booth K10, Melbourne Art Fair, Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, 2A Clarendon Street, South Wharf 3006
Price: To attend this workshop, please purchase a ticket to Melbourne Art Fair here.
Materials provided
ABOUT THE WORKSHOP
You are invited to sketch Arts Project Australia artist Chris Masons’ big, beautiful, nude ceramic women during this still life drawing session with Chris Mason and APA artists.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Chris Mason is an accomplished artist working across the disciplines of painting, drawing, sculpture and ceramics. His practice involves extensive research, generating ideas that span across a wide range of subject matter with particular focus on voluptuous female forms and animals such as snakes and fish. Idiosyncratic and humorous, Mason’s works are often inspired by photographs and images collected by the artist. By extension and as part of his process, Mason also writes stories that relate directly to his thematic explorations.
Chris Mason has worked in the Arts Project Australia studio since 1997. His work is included in the National Gallery of Australia, State Library of Victoria and National Gallery of Victoria collections.
Rakhi James is an emerging artist working with multiple mediums in her practice. James creates works on paper in fine detail using sophisticated colour combinations, exploring a variety of themes including mythology, Indian gods, architecture and the female form. The works are notable for their intricate coloured grids and unique compositions.
James has worked at Arts Project Australia since 2016 and has exhibited in a number of Arts Project Australia’s group exhibitions. Her work is held in private collections nationally.
Oscar Donati is an emerging multidisciplinary artist whose work moves fluidly between painting and textile art. Their bold, abstract canvases are characterised by vibrant colour-blocking and organic shapes that suggest a playful exploration of form and space. In contrast, their whimsical embroidered pieces often draw on familiar pop culture motifs - like retro video game characters - creating an immediate sense of nostalgia.
Emerging artist Christian Semertzidis uses art historical and still-life references to render textual drawings to great effect. The stark, reductive abstractions constructed of multi-directional linework possess a moody, haunting quality.
Christian began working with Arts Project Australia in 2022. His work is held in private collections.
ACCESSIBILITY
The Fair is located on the ground floor of MCEC at Door 1, with ramp access at the building’s entrance and elevator access from the parking lot. MCEC offer limited wheelchairs for day loans, with wider wheelchairs available if needed.
To arrange wheelchair hire, contact MCEC Customer Service team at +61 3 9235 8000 or email [email protected]
Accessible toilets, ramps and lifts are available throughout the venue. Companion cards are accepted.
A quiet space is available inside the venue, please see a Melbourne Art Fair staff member for directions.
Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) is on the bank of the Yarra River in South Wharf. It is a short walk from Melbourne’s central business district and a 20-minute drive from Melbourne Airport.
Enter via Exhibition Door 1. The nearest MCEC entrance is on Clarendon Street.
Image credit: Untitled, Chris Mason, 2025
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC), 2a Clarendon Street, South Wharf, Australia
AUD 0.00
