Chloë Holt RCA FRSA - "Srulu"

Original painting by Chloë Holt RCA FRSA. One of the youngest artists ever to be elected a member of the RCA. Winner of the 2012 Kyffin Williams Drawing Prize, Chloe also, in 2010 won the International Lorenzo il Magnifico prize by the Florence Biennale for works on paper.

"Srulu is a quiet study of form, contrast and the enduring presence of handmade objects. The painting depicts two traditional Puglian earthenware water jugs—one glazed in warm ochre, the other left raw and unglazed. There’s a quiet dialogue between them: one luminous and sealed, the other matte and porous, each shaped by human hands, earth, and fire.

The title Srulu, drawn from a local dialect in Puglia, evokes something intimate and untranslatable—perhaps a whispered name, a fragment of place, or a rhythm remembered. In this work, I was drawn to the way these vessels hold history without needing to explain it. They are practical forms, but also deeply sculptural—worn, imperfect, and dignified. This still life is less about objects as symbols and more about presence—the quiet sense that something or someone has just stepped out of view."

Oil and gesso on board in antique frame.

34.5 x 42.5cm Unframed size.