“24 Carat Strawberry Mousse”
gold sculpture, 2006
Gold not only has a commercial value but also a symbolic one. It is a very pure material and it can't erode. It is eternal. Wedding rings are made of gold to symbolise eternal love. Religions use gold to express divinity. For French artist Yves Klein gold represented afterlife.
In London I came across a garden-centre that was run by people with a slight mental disability. They grew ordinary weed and field flowers for sale. I worked together with a silversmith to mummify one of these plants by coating it in pure gold. This way the weed gained status. The resulting sculpture combined a symbol of transience,the flower, with a symbol of eternity, the gold.
In art terms works that remind us of our mortality have often been called Memento Mori or Vanitas symbols.
In collaboration with Richard Fox Associates
(Fox Silver Ltd), London. Photography: Bas Wilders