Bitumen and silver – two materials extracted from deep within the earth. While they tend to serve primarily industrial purposes, Heidi Gerullis uses them to her own creative ends. In her compositions, they appear as antagonists – or, more precisely, as complementary antagonists.

The compact, opaque black mass of bitumen contrasts with the ultra-thin, shiny silver leaf. The two materials enter into a dialogue, perhaps even an elemental contest. As in a game of chess, victory is fickle – sometimes black dominates, sometimes white. But there is no ultimate winner in this game of opposing forces: they meet as equals, and it is together that they unfold their full expressive potential.

Order is something artificial. The natural state is chaos.

Heidi Gerullis quotes ARthur Schnitzler (†1931)