Two artists, from the Netherlands and Hong Kong, came together to explore the idea of value in the present-day world.
A refreshingly understated sense of humour is common to both Anniek Verholt and Rachel Cheung, whose joint show, Double Intensity, was on display at the Unit Gallery of the Jockey Club Creative Arts Centre (JCCAC) in Hong Kong.
Both alumni of the University of Sunderland, Verholt and Cheung have worked together before. While both have played up the binaries in their own works, they are acutely aware of the contrasts between their styles and sensibilities, and the impact the juxtaposition of the two can achieve.
The exhibition featured a series of installations by two highly gifted creative people whose choice of media - glass, ceramic, paper, gold, food grains, organic soil - seem to be informed by their desire to capture a slice of the bigger picture without being pedagogical about it. Even as the duo explores and problematizes the idea of value against the backdrop of the big themes of our times - environmental degradation, hostilities between nations, displacement and migration - they do so with less noise and more detachment, smiling quietly at the way people, including world leaders, tend to fall for the glitter, and overlook the gold.
The two artists, Anniek now based in London and Cheung a Hong Kong native, have joined hands to put up a show that transcends national and regional boundaries in terms of look and feel.
Verholt's work is about highlighting contrasts. She has painted over pages of influential newspapers (mostly The Financial Times), reducing news about mighty world leaders and weighty issues having to do with international trade and commerce to nothingness, swabbed over by crude brush strokes. Tiny squares and patches on the whitewashed surface are filled in with shavings of 24 carat pure gold.
Her theme, she says, is "the human tendency for greed and fear of lack". "By always reaching and looking for that next goal we lose out on - what I believe is - the real gold, that is the present moment," says Verholt. "It is in the here and now that we can appreciate precious moments of connection with ourselves, others and life."
Cheung points to the fact that she and Verholt have their roots in opposite ends of the globe. "Double Intensity can mean something similar or two very contrasting qualities," she says, underscoring the obvious difference in temperament in their works. But then, she adds, "when having a closer look you will know we are exploring the topic of 'value' in different ways and through different media".
Verholt is full of admiration for the "stunning and beautifully elegant" nature of Cheung's work, significantly different from her own, "offering a clear contrast in chosen media, concept, color and mood".
"Where Rachel's work has a softness and smooth finish, my pieces offer texture and a certain robustness," she says, pinpointing the particularities in their preferred techniques.
This article originally appeared on China Daily.