Gardeners of Desire

EDITION

2018

school

Academie voor Kunst en Vormgeving AKV|St.Joost
Breda, The Netherlands

links

frijkecoumans.co.uk ↗

The title “Gardeners of Desire” suggests a “makeability” of what we desire, and thus contradicts the photographs and the text. I see my photographs as containing what cannot be comprehended into our self-designed system.
Agitation in my head and unanswered questions do not fit in harmonious and controlled environments. Unanswered questions represent a need, and fuel my project and correspond to desire. The series is full of chaos, not-knowing, impressions and questions, lead by an apparent “makeability” born in the mind, which however cannot be controlled.
That which you cannot comprehend, that which withdraws itself from you, feels like an emptiness that needs to be filled. Desire always implies a need: at the moment that the need is met, the desire has gone.
“Makeability” doesn’t result automatically in satisfaction. Often, I have no idea what I want, and it is precisely the unexpected that makes the days special. The satisfaction of control is short and kills our imagination. Imagination is essential in desire.