EXPO ‘Octavia Cook: Coup de grâce’ – Galerie Rob Koudijs, Amsterdam (NL) – 15 Janv.-26 Fevr. 2011

 Octavia Cook: Coup de grâce

« Brand names are looming increasingly large in everyday life. Bags, shoes, clothes: all are linked to a brand which in its turn serves as a code. To test the role of jewellery in this power game the New-Zealand artist Octavia COOK transformed her production line into an imaginary, multinational, luxury brand called Cook & Co (with Tiffany & Co at the back of her mind).
From this concept an remarkable collection of jewellery has been created over the last five years, every item of course bearing a logo and other forms of corroborating testimonial. The pieces, for the most part executed in synthetic materials, denote traditional values like power (HRH Elizabeth II), history (captain James Cook) and vanitas symbolism. As far as the design is concerned the archetypal cameo brooch has often been used as a basis. The large folder that will appear in conjunction with the exhibition documents the many facets of the entire Cook & Co-dynasty range.
In the meantime the Cook & Co bubble is about to burst: this original idea has not been able to weather the storm of other contemporary phenomena like terrorism. Cook & Co is therefore making a new start with an experimental line: there are rumoura about explosions, fires and attacks. Octavia Cook’s jewellery challenging for the mind as well as providing a feast for the eyes..  » - Ward Schrijver (© Galerie Rob Koudijs)

Octavia COOK- Necklace- Cook Brand Firecrackers – silver, shrink wrap

Octavia COOK-  brooch ‘Perforated Imperator’

 

 

 

Galerie Rob Koudijs
Elandsgracht 12
1016TV – Amsterdam
Netherlands
Telephone: [phone]
Telephone: [phone]
website: www.galerierobkoudijs.nl
mail: [e-mail]