Today, as we present MANY WORLDS, ONE MIND, we are honoured to include works from the Ellen Melas Kyriazi Josefowitz prestigious collection whose generosity, intellect and curiosity become woven into the artist's life and work. So who was she? An art historian, publisher, advisor, scholar and collector of exceptional vision, Ellen approached art not as an object of ownership but as a lifelong conversation. Together with her partner she built a collection of a profound and enduring understanding of art's place within the wider history of human civilization. Thus the work of Cheung embraced her passion for art as a metaphor for transferring stories and histories through the visual arts.

Ellen's relationship with Gordon Cheung extended far beyond collecting. She was one of the great patrons of his generation; a patron in the truest and most meaningful sense of the word. She understood that artists are formed not only through making but through travel, research, dialogue and the pursuit of knowledge. Her support enabled and encouraged much of the Silk Road investigation that became fundamental to Gordon's practice. Through journeys to Dunhuang and the ancient routes that connected East and West, and through countless conversations about history, culture, empire and exchange, Ellen helped nurture a way of seeing that continues to resonate throughout Gordon's work today. We are so lucky to have some of these pieces on the walls of Close Gallery. We are equally grateful to Ellen's family and estate for recognising the importance of this history and allowing these works to be placed thoughtfully rather than dispersed without context. It is our hope that their future custodians, whether private collectors or institutions, will understand and value the extraordinary story they embody.

Throughout this exhibition we encounter deserts and ruins, lost civilisations and trade routes, myths and empires, systems of exchange, and the rise and fall of cultures. These themes are not merely subjects; they are investigations into how humanity remembers itself. Cheung’s landscapes become repositories of memory where history, economics, technology and spirituality collide. They ask us to consider what survives, what disappears, and what remains embedded within the collective imagination.

Gordon is not only an exceptional artist; he is one of the most thoughtful and intellectually rigorous voices working today. His work transcends the immediacy of the contemporary world, drawing together ancient histories and future possibilities, myth and technology, beauty and collapse. Few artists possess such an ability to navigate between worlds while revealing the invisible connections that bind them together. Please come and take a trip to Somerset and see the show.