A Place to Sit
Group Show
24 April – 16 May 2026

Benjamin Cotter Dephoff and Aida Smith

As days pass us by and the seasons change, it is a gift to be able to crop into the details of our daily landscapes. A kitchen table surrounded by family, or the bush as we traverse up into its hills - there is tangibility of time and much needed stillness to be found in both Aida Smith and Benjamin Cotter Dephoff’s canvases. Twentysix Gallery is pleased to present their latest works in ‘A Place to Sit’ - the two artists' depictions of small, everyday rituals grounding us - providing a texture and meaning in what might seem like ordinary moments.

The two oil painters work with introspection and the rhythm of slow living, documenting the subtle shifts across our day to day. While Ben’s paintings are attuned to how time and weather shape his landscapes, Aida’s scenes from home seem suspended in time, with an ever so subtle mirroring of the changes in light, warmth and routine that mark our passage across the changing seasons. A tonal warmth spreading across them both as we enter autumn - reflective, inward and a time for slowing down.

Ben bases his practice in the bush, an ‘on the ground’ report of Aotearoa’s wild trails and the steps taken on them. A deep breath looking down from the top of a summit, as well as floral close ups from on the way up. His works are deep in tone, with the dark greens and brown of the landscape and wood walls in the firelight of a DOC hut, as a base for each scene he depicts in his perfectly detailed, almost photorealistic style. 

Aida’s lens is closer up. The scene while sitting down with a cup of tea and a loved one or a candle lit in the evening - her people seem to have just left the frame, their presence felt at the edges. A looser stroke, a wider shadow - warming light that emanates from her canvases. Both Ben and Aida’s works are underscored with a recognition of how important it is to recharge - to leave the weekday rush for a while and take time in solitude, or else surrounded by your community, whether it is in the wild winds of the outdoors, or warm inside - intentional stillness, reflection and appreciation is nourishment for an active mind.

The exhibition runs from 24 April – 16 May 2026, with an opening celebration on Thursday, 23 April at 5pm.