Over the edge

Over the edge (2016) by Berend Strik suggests a transgression — going beyond acceptable limits, crossing a boundary, tipping over into something else.

The edge is a threshold — the boundary between two states, two territories, two conditions. "Over the edge" implies that this threshold has been crossed, that we are now in a different state from before.

Strik's textile interventions could be seen as going "over the edge" of the original photograph — adding something that transforms the image beyond its original state. The additions push the image into new territory, making it something different from what it started as.

Psychologically, "over the edge" suggests a breakdown — a loss of control, a descent into madness or despair. Yet Strik's textile additions — soft, warm, enveloping — seem more like comfort than transgression, more like crossing into safety than danger.

Sources: Galerie Fons Welters