Bart Koning

How Bart Koning presents his objects is deliberate and essential. Bluntly, sometimes absurdly so, they occupy the center of his compositions, but almost always in a delicate, uncertain balance that symbolizes the fragility of their existence. For how long will that cherry stay in place with its stem proudly sticking up? Won’t that bowl full of apples soon tip over and crash on the floor, disturbing the peace and quiet? In the hands of Bart Koning these objects act like equilibrists: holding our breath we watch them in awe, in the way we might watch the antics of tightrope walkers high above our heads. The precarious balance reminds us how vulnerable the soothing silence is, it can be broken it in a split-second. It places the vulnerability of our own existence in the center of attention. Instead of looking at still lives we are looking at ourselves. (IJsbrand van Veelen)