Kunstverein Heilbronn realizes the first institutional solo exhibition in the German-speaking world with New York-based painter and sculptor Austin Eddy (born 1986, studied at the Chicago Institute of Art).  In his painting, Austin Eddy formulates contradictions; he draws on the traditions of classical modernism, exploring the balance between figuration and abstraction. The main motifs in his works are birds, fish, and flowers. These figurative elements unfurl into still lifes, landscapes, and cityscapes. Painted in bold colors and modulated using various textures of paint application, the pictorial elements appear in a perspectival coexistence, in a network of lines and surfaces, thereby forming a complex structure of spatial overlays. Similar pictorial motifs reappear repeatedly in different formations, colors, and compositions. This serial approach and the abstract nature of the motifs initially contradict the notion of a living, growing and expressive depiction of nature. The artist is actually less concerned with a spontaneous manifestation of an affinity with nature, but rather with an examination of the way in which nature is conveyed in art. This context is further indicated by the title of the exhibition: Still Life – a still image, still alive – captured in an atmospheric oeuvre of vibrant colors, vivid border motifs, abstract planes of light. This interplay between detachment and a deep connection to nature finds a poetic and minimalist formulation in Austin Eddy’s work. The exhibition presents canvases as well as works on paper and sculptures, as in recent months the artist has expanded his work to include sculptural works and ceramics. The interplay of line and surface thus finds a further material language and thematic elaboration.