“I am my own muse. I am the subject I know best. The subject I want to know better,” Frida Kahlo said, her words revealing a profound truth about the creation of art. In the hands of a painter, the canvas is transformed into a page in the book of life, delving into the intricate facets of existence that lay both within and beneath the shimmering surfaces of the visible world. The painting is an exploration of the artist’s inner and outer worlds, creating a space where the two might meet and in that encounter proffer something we have never before seen.
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“As an artist, you always have to challenge yourself. It’s about growth, engaging with the unknown, and recognising something new, like, ‘Yes, that’s what I was searching for’,” says French-American artist, actor, and model Anh Duong, who is currently exhibiting a selection of her works in La Tentation d’Exister. There is always Champagne in the Fridge at Galerie Gmurzynska in Zurich. Bringing together a selection of still lifes, self-portraits, and portraits of Vincent Gallo, Susan Sarandon, and Anjelica Huston, the exhibition offers an intimate look at Duong’s practice over the past 30 years.
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Duong first made her name as a model when noted photographer David Seidner launched her career in March 1986 with an Yves Saint Laurent campaign for Vogue Paris. Trained as a ballerina, Duong was a natural in front of the camera, effortlessly holding difficult poses for extended periods of time, and quickly went on work with luminaries including Herb Ritts, Steven Meisel, Patrick Demarchelier, and Peter Lindbergh. Muse to Christian Lacroix, Duong has walked the runway for John Galliano, Yohji Yamamoto, and Karl Lagerfeld, becoming a singular beauty during the era of the supermodel.
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