Still Point
Contemporary Melbourne gallery Otomys is celebrating its 15th anniversary at the Villa Alba Museum from 13-23 November 2025. ‘Still Point’ brings together new work by Australian and international artists in direct response to the historic mansion.
Otomys co-directors Megan Dicks and Hannah Abbott describe ‘Still Point’ as “a call to slow looking, a quiet encounter, a space for resonance, not reaction”. Featuring painting, sculpture, textile and mixed media works by long-time Otomys artists and newer additions to the roster, the show will take over the Villa Alba site – a historically significant and beautifully preserved 1880s mansion in Melbourne’s inner-eastern suburb of Kew.
Among those making their Otomys debut are Caroline Collom, Madisyn Zabel and Chica Seal. Collom’s abstract paintings focus on the intersection of form, colour and texture to reveal subtleties that often go unnoticed. Zabel’s gem-like pieces explore the transformative properties of glass using a mix of industrial and hand-finished techniques. Seal, a British painter and sculptor, draws on mythology, folklore and pop culture to explore the historical misrepresentation of women and reclaim the female voice.
Other artists in the show include Anna van der Ploeg, Frances van Hasselt, Helen Redmond, Hermentaire, Joel Sorensen, Katy Papineau, Marie Bernard, Piet Raemdonck, Sophia Szilágyi and Colin Pennock. Each has been invited to engage meaningfully with Villa Alba’s ornate architecture and lavishly decorated interiors. “‘Still Point’ at Villa Alba offers artists the chance to create new work within a new context,” says Abbott. “They are invited to respond directly to its spaces, shifting their perspectives and processes.”
For Redmond, this means considering the ‘psychogeography’ of space – how sensory experience shapes our perception of the world around us. Meanwhile, Szilágyi’s composite prints use found imagery to build dreamlike, sometimes unsettling, scenes. Pennock brings a unique perspective shaped by his time as a police constable in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, leaning into nature as a place of refuge to escape a turbulent past. “In a world saturated by cultural clamour, ‘Still Point’ offers an alternative,” says Dicks. “The works reflect process, perception and philosophy. These are not artworks that demand attention. They reward it.”
Since opening in 2010, Otomys has shown work by more than 60 artists from across Australia, Europe, Asia, South Africa and the United States. Over the years, its reputation has grown steadily, based on building personal relationships with artists and a commitment to thoughtful curation. Villa Alba – with its incredible hand-painted interiors, panoramic, heritage murals and late Victorian gardens – offers an ideal setting for this 15-year milestone. As visitors move through its historic rooms, the exhibition encourages them to pause, engage and reconnect with slower rhythms of looking.
