Ronél de Jager | Still Here

Still Here: Exploring Boundaries in de Jager's Exhibition

Showcasing paintings, prints, and a collaborative beaded work with Qaqambile Bead Studio, Still Here delves into Ronél de Jager’s latest exploration of blurring boundaries between reality and artifice, questioning their impact on personal relationships and self-perception. By re-interpreting the 17th and 18th century Vanitas still life tradition and integrating digital tools, de Jager dissects our ‘pixelated life’ with poetic sensitivity, rendering it bearable even as it unravels.

Confined to our homes for two years, forced interactions online intensified our understanding of genuine communication. While social media simplifies sharing and connecting, its curated nature and algorithmic bubble fosters digital realities wwe inhabit more than the external world. Refusal seems futile as it permeates every aspect of contemporary life.

De Jager confronts this phenomenon by deploying the symbolic structure of the Vanitas ‘still life’ to explore the significance of the ceremonial bouquet. Does a texted bouquet emoji hold the same weight as a real one when offered in consolation? Do real flowers and digital flowers even differ anymore? When even seemingly innocuous objects like flowers have such complex digital counterparts, the deeper complexities of our online lives become readily apparent.

This curation mirrors de Jager's interest in meticulously arranged flower bouquets, symbolic of fleeting connections and the impermanence of both online interactions and our own minds.