Alice Santow

@acey_sto

Alice Santow is an Australian figurative painter living on Gadigal Country in Sydney, NSW. Her work delves into the intimate, everyday rituals and interactions that unfold within the confines of her home. Growing up in a large suburban Sydney family, Alice’s paintings reflect the drama and subtle tensions of these family dynamics. She archives these moments through candid photographs, which serve as the foundation of her artistic practice. Through her painting process, she imbues these scenes with her subjective reality, offering viewers a 'privileged view' into the complexity of domestic life—its intimacy, isolation, connection, and comfort.
Her work engages deeply with the tradition of domesticity in art, drawing inspiration from historical movements such as the Nabis and Dutch Masters, who elevated mundane, everyday activities with new depth and significance. Using oil paint on small panels, Alice achieves a sense of intimacy both in scale and subject. She desires to connect herself to the past with the ongoing tradition of artists and writers who catalogue people’s lives through their domestic spaces.

View the work: Building 24 Level 1, First Floor Gallery