EFFLORESCENCE SERIES

2013-ongoing

Installation at Museum Van Loon, Amsterdam (2024), as part of the exhibition Home and the World

Neon, bulbs, aluminum, mixed media

Each 48 x 48 x 6 inch

Titles: Kerubut, Karkadé

Note:

Kerubut - corpse lily [Indonesia]

Karkadé - hibiscus [Sudan]

The Efflorescence sculptures consist of large-scale reproductions of national flowers in light installations reminiscent of billboards and seemingly referencing pop culture. This highlights the irony of using flora, which inherently disregards national borders, as symbols of national distinction and identity. The title of the series carries a dual meaning, focusing on both the beauty of flowers in bloom and the processes of decay and discoloration.

Adorning the facade of the canal house is Kerubut, one of Indonesia's three national flowers. It is a botanical marvel—a parasitic flower and the largest flower on earth. Its scientific name is Rafflesia Arnoldii, also popularly known as the corpse lily. The flower is native to Sumatra, and the work's title is drawn from one of its Sumatran names.

The Karkadé, a hibiscus native to Sudan, is showcased in the museum's central hall. It references the region of the Sudan in both its beauty and its misfortune.

https://www.museumvanloon.nl/te-zien-en-te-doen/kunst/180

https://www.museumvanloon.nl/te-zien-en-te-doen/home-and-the-world

Home and the World is an exhibition of contemporary art curated by guest curator and art historian Thomas J. Berghuis, set within the historical context of Museum Van Loon. Fourteen artists from around the world explore the intricate connections between colonialism and nationalism.

The 19th and 20th centuries are often depicted as periods of progress, scientific development, industrial revolution, and capitalism. Simultaneously, colonialism and imperialism thrived, and concepts like the 'nation-state' and 'national identity' became increasingly dominant in mainland Europe.

In the Netherlands, after Napoleon's defeat in 1815, King Willem I worked diligently to establish the nation-state of the Netherlands. National institutions such as De Nederlandsche Bank and De Nederlandsche Handelsmaatschappij were founded, and the state took over the activities of the VOC and the WIC. Families like the Van Loon's were part of the societal elite steering these processes.

Even during the 20th-century process of decolonization, the influence of former colonial powers persisted in determining the autonomy of former colonies, defining borders, and shaping institutional structures.

Home and the World shines a light on these histories and poses a question: how can humanity feel at home in a world beyond the 'colonial state' and the 'nation-state'? What insights and concepts—from migrant communities, indigenous peoples, collectives, and diaspora representatives—provide us with tools for connectivity across often artificial borders? How can humanity coexist in harmony with each other and with nature?

The exhibition's title is derived from the novel Ghare Baire ("The Home and the World", 1913) by Indian writer and poet Rabindranath Tagore.