Gerard Williams : Cultural Currency

10 Oct-28 Nov 2015

Overview

Handel Street Projects is pleased to announce Cultural Currency an exhibition of new works by British artist Gerard Williams. The exhibition consists of a number of small birch plywood tablets, each of which encapsulates at least two genuine, complete bank notes. These are made partially visible through small windows disclosing numeric denominations as well as isolated details such as illustrations, patterns etc., however, the origin of the notes is obscured. Cultural Currency plays with relative values, with the value of art, the value of money, with connections between culture, history and financial capital, with value and the passage of time, with the position of nations relative to world financial hierarchies. Each double-sided work is a unique variation on the theme. Whilst the notes are loose and unfolded, they are also permanently sealed within the work, therefore in order to realize their monetary value, or their value as collectables, the artwork would have to be destroyed.