Open world, designed by John Young in 2005, was commissioned by the State Government of Victoria as a gift from the people of Victoria to the people of Nanjing in China, marking the 25th anniversary of the sister-city relationship between Nanjing and Melbourne and to celebrate the completion of the then new Nanjing Library.

Young, who was born in Hong Kong in 1956 and moved to Australia in 1967, explores his own artistic and cultural history through his practice, while responding to issues in Australian art history.

Open world is a composite image incorporating Australian and Chinese references. The background is of an 18th-century Chinese tapestry in reverse, depicting foreigners offering gifts to a Chinese ruler. A cluster of photographic imagery lines the edges of the tapestry: a Eurasian women in a Chinese wedding dress; Victoria’s Great Ocean Road; a cloudscape; and pictures of the cherry blossom (native to Nanjing province) and pink heath (Victoria’s floral emblem). The surface is dotted with Chinese calligraphy and the names of lands discovered by the 15th-century Chinese explorer, Admiral Zheng He. The Chinese characters layered over the top of the design are previous historical names for Nanjing. Young arranged for these names to be written by a Chinese calligrapher in the appropriate script for the historical period in which the name was used. There are also three words in English mirroring the Chinese, Kulin Nation, Naarm and Bareberp, which are all Aboriginal/Koori names for Melbourne/ Victoria.

In its bicultural references Open World continues to examine Young’s evolving exploration of transcultural concerns and the diasporic experience.

John Young Zerunge is represented by Arc One Gallery.