In the rush to get from one ‘to do’ to the next, we miss things. We miss the stillness in between checkboxes and obligations and we miss the breathing room that comes with it. We miss opportunities for laughter and joy. We miss what we need. The “Everyday Captures” exhibition is an invitation to pause — at a streetlight-lit corner store, on the edge of a sunny pool, in the eyes of a stranger — and take it all in.

Inhale levity and irreverence in the work of Themba Mbuyisa, Luske Biermann and Ryan Swart, with snapshots that look in on intimate moments hidden in plain sight. Elu Eboka’s poignant yet approachable portrait of a Queen Mother and Thalente Khomo’s reflection on the beauty of still water will both invite you to take a moment for yourself and your people, to remember that sometimes, simply being is enough. Ashley Walters’ work celebrates the solace of both a silent street and a stirring samba, reminding us that rest has more than one face. In the studio work of Delmaine Donson and Marta Scavone, the viewer finds tension unravelled in the absence of the expected and proper. Celeste Jacobs’ slices of life make the case for more carefree living, unburdened by introspection and the fear of disorder. Each photograph asks us for a tribute of the time we neglect to give ourselves, only to hand it right back to us as a beautiful experience of the many sources, forms and styles of stillness.

In a departure for SMAC Gallery, “Everyday Captures” is a photography exclusive exhibit. No other medium would communicate this call to pause in quite the same way: photography compels our imagination to embrace our realities, all at once freezing time and freeing it. This collection invites viewers to take a real break from mining the world for meaning: Observe or participate, but for once, set down analysis. Lean into rest, and indulge in the lightness and ease we all deserve a slice of right now.