L.A. Raeven - Beyond the Image

Twin sisters Angelique and Liesbeth Raeven from the Dutch province of Limburg form the artist duo L.A. Raeven. Over the past decade, they have made a name for themselves in the international art world with video installations and performances that make powerful and personal statements about consumerism and the ideal of feminine beauty. Their work - viewed as controversial in the art world - reflects an obsession with food and their struggle against the clich\'e9s about twins. Lisa Boerstra's film captures the creation of two new works and follows the twins in their daily lives at home, where they live and work together. She intercuts these scenes with excerpts from the duo's earlier works and family videos of the twins as babies and children. As well as being intensely close, the sisters' relationship is painfully complex - as the film gradually reveals. Apparently trivial matters cause constant tension, such as who eats how much of what kind of food. Their symbiotic relationship is put to the test when they try to make individual choices. This is when the pursuit of individual and joint identity takes on an even more pregnant form.