Venus Veldhoen (1968) exhibits two series in which beauty is emphasized: a series about Indian feet, rough and weathered but adorned with jewelry, and a series about fashion designed by Max Heymans.
Veldhoen took the photographs of the feet while travelling in India in 1996. Feet are sacred in India and they also carry great importance for her: "Feet take you everywhere in life, they are the number one means of transport. As the naked foot is in direct contact with the earth, I believe it passes on personal strength and aura to the trodden ground."
The Ode to Heymans, Nestor of Couture was realized in cooperation with Veldhoen's permanent stylist Abia Jansen. An unrestricted project on fashion coincidentally brought them into contact with Heymans, the couturier -turned 78 by now- and his forgotten designs. Some of the designs worn by the models in the photographs, were literally taken from the basement by Veldhoen and Jansen, forgotten and damaged.
In The Garden of Eden these two series are united, making clear how the quest for beauty takes shape in completely different ways in different cultures.