I, Volume 1 - Photographic Works by Victoria Kon

We never look at just one thing; we are always looking at the relation between things and ourselves. Our vision is continually active, continually moving, continually holding things in a circle around itself, constituting what is present to us as we are.

Soon after we can see, we are aware that we can also be seen. The eye of the other combines with our own eye to make it fully credible that we are part of the visible world.¹ - John Berger

Art Beatus (Vancouver) Consultancy Ltd is very pleased to present I, Volume 1, a solo exhibition of photographic works by Victoria Kon as part of Capture Photography Festival. In her debut solo exhibition, I, Volume 1 features a series of photographs that were formed by her artbook of the same name. Printed and hand-bound by Kon herself, the artbook was produced in association with Publication Studio Vancouver and is available for purchase through Art Beatus.

Shooting on film photography, each image is a “portrait” with what looks like two oval cut outs that reveal only the eye area of the sitter. Funny enough, the idea for this series of photographs came out of Kon's anxieties with human interaction and – more specifically – eye contact. According to Kon, “...each set of eyes were printed on nonsensical colored pages” in the artbook in order “to remove possible anthropological or racial connotations”.

This ocular composition of depicting the eyes of the sitter affords a partial anonymity, like a reverse masquerade mask; however, the images result in a focused attention to the eyes and the often humorous expressions that their owner makes with them. The camera may mediate the human interaction of eye contact between the artist and her subjects but, in almost all of the photographs, ironically, the direct gaze of the sitter's eyes now seem to confront the self-conscious gaze of the viewer of these photographs.

Born in the Greater Vancouver area to Chinese-Singaporean parents, Victoria Kon is currently studying at Simon Fraser University with a Visual Arts Major and Print and Digital Publishing Minor and will soon be a new graduate as she concludes her program this Spring. With a passion for design and publishing, Kon has collaborated with other artists and arts organizations such as Unit/Pitt Studios Publication and Publication Studio Vancouver. In addition, she has been awarded the SFU Service Award from Simon Fraser University School for the Contemporary Arts.

For more information, please visit our website at www.artbeatus.com or call the gallery at 1 (604) 688-2633.

Art Beatus, with a location in Vancouver, Canada and two locations in Hong Kong, showcases international art with a focus on contemporary Chinese art. Art Beatus (Vancouver) is located in the Nelson Square Office Tower at 108 – 808 Nelson Street in Vancouver, BC.

Art Beatus (Vancouver) Consultancy Ltd. is open Monday to Friday, 10am-6pm and is closed on weekends and holidays. Underground and street parking is available. Free admission.

For more information, please contact Media Relations, Tamla Mah or Ellinda Siu by email: info@artbeatus.com or telephone: 604-688-2633.