Monat: Februar 2016

fwbd3,33, Rote Stadt, Öl auf Leinwand, 40 x 50 cm. Der Augsburger Religionsfrieden liegt schon lange zurück, aber weil ich evangelisch nach Augsburger Bekenntnis bin, verband ich Augsburg in meinen Vorstellungen mit der unsinnigen Idee, in Augsburg wären besonders tolerante Menschen zuhause. Abgesehen davon, dass mir die Stadt auf meinem kurzen Besuch im September 2007 übertrieben geschniegelt vorkam, sind wir auf Schritt und Tritt nur auf Verbotenes und Versperrtes getroffen. Es war unmöglich, mit dem Hund in eines der Lokale hineinzudürfen, aber auch mit den Kaffeehäusern erging es uns so. Auf unserem Weg lag das städtische Schwimmbad, und mir kam plötzlich der Gedanke, vielleicht sind die da alle einfach nur irgendwie verkehrt, und ich fragte hinein, ob wir mit unserem Hund in ihr Büffet einkehren dürften, worauf  wir gerade dort, wo alles steril war, nur ja selbstverständlich hörten und wir ganz freundlich mit Kaffee und Kirschkuchen bewirtetet wurden,

fwbd3,33, Small Red Town, oil on canvas, 40 by 50 cm, 2007.  If somebody asks me, or if I have to fill in a form where they want to know my confession, I answer that I am a protestant “A. C.”, which means Augsburg Confession. The historical “Religious Peace of Augsburg” dates back more than 500 years. That made me believe – naively – that the citizens of Augsburg would be exceptionally tolerant people. During a short visit in September 2007, however, I did not find any sign of tolerance. Apart from the fact that everything was over-styled in that town, at every turn things were forbidden or closed to us. It was impossible to go into one of the cafés restaurants with my dog. When we passed the local swimming pool I suddenly had the idea that maybe everybody there was just a little bit reversed, and so I asked, if we were allowed to enter the buffet. And just there, where everything was clean and sterile, they said “of course” and “why not” and offered us coffee and cherry cake and treated us in a very friendly way.

fwbd3,33, Piccola città rossa, olio su tela, 40 x 50 cm, 2007.. A causa della pace religiosa di Augusta  nell’anno 1555, e siccome io sono protestante in senso della confessione religiosa, pensavo ingenuamente  che la gente à Augusta sia più tollerante d’ altrove. A parte che la città mi sembrava troppo azzimata  c’ incontravamo le situazioni o vietati o chiusi passo passo. C’ era impossibile di entrare col cane a un ristorante e altrettanto c’ era con le caffè. Per via c’ era il piscino pubblico, e mi veniva l’ idea che la gente lì forse vorrebbe soltanto distinguersi da quella in alte città. E proprio lì dove si aspettasse tutto sterile ci dicono di si, e come no? Erano molto gentile con noi e ci offrono il caffè con dolce di ciglige.

fwbd3,32, Gasse in Strasburg, 40 x 50 cm, 2007. An meiner beschönigenden Ansicht von Strasburg aus dem Gedächtnis, wo ich am Tag nach der Veranstaltung im September 2007 ins Zentrum spaziert bin, stimmt das Querformat für die prächtig ausladende Gasse. In der Realität waren mehrere Gebäude in der Nähe des Doms gerade Baustellen und die Geräusche der Stadt von Presslufthämmern übertönt. In der späteren Abgeschiedenheit meines Ateliers haben sich die Bilder in mir wieder in die lautlosen Töne der Farben verwandelt.

fwbd3,32, Lane in Strasbourg, oil on cardboard and wood, 40 by 50 cm. I painted this oblong format picture out of my glorifying memory of the bright lane in the centre of Strasbourg, where I took a walk after an event in September 2007. In reality, in the centre around the cathedral, there where a lot of buildings in renovation, people were working and the noise of their jackhammers was drowning the sounds of the city. Later, in the silence of my studio, the pictures inside me retransformed into the soundless values of colours.

fwbd3,32, Viale a Strasburgo, olio su cartone e tavola, 40 x 50 cm, 2007.  Dipingendo il quadro che sarebbe più bella della realtà l’ho fatto a memoria. La serata dell’inaugurazione della mostra sono andata in giro fino al centro di Strasburgo, dov’è il duomo. Per via ci erano molti cantieri col rumore adatto degli martelli pneumatici. Ritornata a casa le immagini dentro di me si sono trasformati a tinta silenziosa.

fwbd3,31, Gasse in Paris, Öl auf Karton und Passepartout, 20 x 30 cm, 1993 und 2007. Als logische Folge des Einmalens der Umrahmungen erschien es mir, das Bild auch über ein Passepartout hinaus fortzusetzen. In meiner Phase der Passepartouts habe ich zum ersten Mal die Maler auf dem Montmartre in Paris gesehen. In meiner romantischen Vorstellung waren sie alle herausragende Persönlichkeiten, die vor progressiven Ideen nur so sprühten, aber jeder von ihnen malte, zumindest dort, Paris-ansichten nach durchschnittlichem Touristengeschmack oder Porträts von Leuten, die sich vor ihnen anstellten. Wahrscheinlich fehlen wegen dieser weiteren Zerstörung einer Illusion die Kuppeln von Montmartre, die man in der Wirklichkeit am Ende dieser Gasse als eigentliches Charakteristikum sieht.

fwbd3,31, Street in Paris, oil on cardboard and passepartout, 20 by 30 cm, 1993 and 2007. As a corollary of my building-in the frames I had to do the same with the passepartouts. In my own phase of passepartouts I saw the painters at Montmartre for the first time in my life. In my romantic conception all the painters there where outstanding personalities, bubbling over with progressive ideas. However – at least on the day I was there – each of them was painting views of Paris in the common taste of the average tourist. Some of them where portraying tourists and people were queuing in front of them. One more of my illusions was destroyed and that is probably the reason why in my “Street of Paris” I left out the dome of Sacre Cœur, which in reality is the characteristic feature of that street.

fwbd3,31, Viale a Parigi, olio su cartone e passepartout, 20 x 30 cm, 1993 e 2007. La conseguenza ovvio del mio lavoro di integrare le cornici nella mia pittura mi pareva di integrare anche il cartone di passepartout. Nella mia fase di usare i passepartout vidi per la prima volta i pittori sul Montmrtre à Parigi. I pittori lì, immaginavo, si distinguerebbero di tutti gli altri e sarebbero pieno di fantasia. In realtà però dipingevano o visti di Parigi secondo il gusto dei turisti o facevano i ritratti delle persone che facevano la fila. Distrutta la mia illusione mancano le cupole del Sacre Cuoer sulla mia pittura, probabilmente, tipico in realtà di questa viale.

fwbd3,30, Lesezimmer, Öl auf Karton und Holt, 42 x 52 cm,

fwbd3,29, Café mit Bücherwand, Öl auf Karton und Holz, 40 x 50 cm, 2000 und 2007. Warum ich auf meinen Bildern gerne Grün verwende, werde ich oft gefragt. Weil Grün für mich die weitläufigste Farbe ist. Bei keiner anderen machen die möglichen Schattierungen so deutliche Unterschiede wie bei Grün. Die Farbe Grün führt mir die Zerbrechlichkeit von Stimmungen vor. Vergleichbar mit dem Innenraum eines Cafés in den jederzeit ein neuer Gast hereinkommen kann, der die Stimmung des Raumes in eine neue verwandelt.

fwbd3,29, Coffeehouse with Bookshelf, oil on cardboard and wood, 40 by 50 cm. Very often people ask me, why I use so much green in my paintings. This is because for me green is the most wide-ranging colour. With no other colour the possible shades show such clear differences. To me, the colour green represents the fragility of moods, comparable to the atmosphere of a coffeehouse, which can change completely at any moment by the arrival of a new customer.

fwbd3,29, Café con biblioteca a muro, olio so cartone e legno , 40 x 50 cm, 2000 e 2007. Ogni tanto mi chiede qualcuno perché userei il colore verde tanto spesso. Secondo me c’è nessun’ altro colore che ha tante sfumature possibili che il verde, i quali fanno allo stesso tempo la distinzione fra stati d’ animo tanto grave. Siccome il verde mi mostra la fragilità dell’ umore mi sembra comparabile allo spazio interiore di un caffè e il fenomeno come si cambia la disposizione quando un’ ospite nuovo ci entra.

fwbd3,28, Bühnenraum, Öl auf Karton und Holz, 40 x 50 cm, 1992 und 2006. Die erste Skizze zu diesem Bild habe ich in Prag im Café Europa gezeichnet und hinterher einige Bilder davon gemalt. Der Kleiderständer mit Hut, der auch auf mehreren Bildern von mir vorkommt, stammte wiederum aus der Zeit in der Grazer Uhlandgasse und ist hier in der Schumanngasse unter der Last von Mänteln und Jacken der Besucher an einem Jännertag einfach eingestürzt. Den roten Schirm, ein Geschenk von meiner ehemaligen Nachbarin Helga, habe ich einmal in irgendeinem Café vergessen. Aus diesen zusammengefügten Requisiten ergibt sich mein Bühnenraum.

fwbd3,28, Stage Area, oil on cardboard and wood, 40 cm by 50 cm, 1992 and 2006: I made the first sketch for this picture in Prag, in the Cafè Europa, and I have painted several pictures from it. I already had the wardrobe with the hat, which can be seen in some of my paintings, when I lived in Uhlandgasse. I took it with me to my studio in Schumanngasse, where I gave a housewarming party ten years ago, on a cold day in January. Maybe there were too many guests because it simply broke down under the weight of the many coats. The red umbrella was a gift from my friend and neighbour Helga and sometimes I forgot the umbrella in a coffee shop. All these requisites make up my stage area.

fwbd3,28, La scena, olio su cartone e legno, 40 x 50 cm, 1992 e 2006. Schizzato nell’ “Hotel Europa” à Praga ne ho dipinto qualche quadro dopo. L’ attaccapanni col cappello l’ avevo usata anche su altri quadri.  L’ oggetto reale era in uso durante i miei anni nella Uhlandgasse. Dopo aver cambiato casa facevamo una festa nella Schumanngasse, per inaugurare il mio nuovo studio. L’ attaccapanni si è rotta sotto il peso dei mantelli e giacchi di cinquantanove ospiti. L’ ombrellone rossa, regalo della mia vicina Helga, l’ ha dimenticata  poco dopo in un caffè, no so dove Messo assieme quegli accessori si forma lo spazio di una scena.

fwbd3,27, Dorf im Westen, 60 x 90 cm, 2008. Während ich in einem der Dörfer in einem Dorfgasthof neben der Dorfkirche auf einen Kaffee einkehrte, kam ein Auto mit Außenlautsprechern und wilder Musik an. Sein Fahrer setzte sich kurz darauf an meinen Nebentisch. Er war der Dorfmechaniker, wie seinen Gesprächen ins Handy zu entnehmen war. Er musste die Delle an meinem Auto rechts vorne gesehen hatte. Er sagte  zu mir, er sei der beste Mechaniker weit und breit und äußerst günstig. Das dachte ich mir schon, sagte ich und ich würde eventuell auf ihn zurückkommen, sobald ich genug zusammengespart hätte.

fwbd3,27, Village in the West, oil of canvas, 60 by 80 cm, 2007.  When I went into the village inn to have a coffee, a car arrived which had an exterior loudspeaker and the music particularly loud. The driver was the mechanic of the village. He sat down at the table next to me and started talking very loudly into his mobile phone. He obviously wanted to attract my attention as he had noticed the dent on the right front side of my car. When I was leaving, he said to me that he was the best mechanic for miles around and very reasonable. “I have thought so” I said, and added that I would save up and might come back to his offer later.

fwbd3,27, Villaggio nell’ ovest, olio su tela, 60 x 80 cm, 2007.  Mentre stavo in una locanda in uno dei miei villaggi, arrivò una macchina che aveva l’ altoparlante fuori. Il conducente entrò e si sedette al tavolo accanto a me. Da quanto raccontavo al suo telefonino fortemente, si sapevo (tutti deducevano) che era il meccanico. Doveva aver visto l’ ammaccatura alla mia macchina in fronte a destra. Sono il meccanico ottimo nei dintorni, mi disse, e a buon prezzo. C’era da immaginarselo, dissi, e non appena che avrò abbastanza soldi ritornerò sulla sua offerta.

fwbd3,26, Kleiner Unterschied, Öl auf Leinwand, 60 x 80 cm, 2007: Die höchste Erhebung ist in Geistthal nicht die Spitze des Kirchturms, das Gemeindeamt, direkt im Schulgebäude, am Hang des Berges liegt wesentlich höher. Nicht alle meine BerufskollegInnen können von sich behaupten, dort schon einmal ausgestellt zu haben. Ich aber schon. Allein das unterscheidet mich von den meisten.

fwbd3,26, Slight Difference, oil on canvas, 60 x 70 cm, 2007: The highest point of Gaisttahl is not the top of the church tower. The municipal office, located in the school building and situated on a mountain side is much higher. For their first exhibition of contemporary art they have chosen me which makes a slight difference between other painters and me.

fwbd3,26,  La distinzione, olio su tela, 60 x 80 cm, 2007: La cima più alta à Geissthal non è affatto la cupola della chiesa. L’ufficio comunale che fa parte dell’ edificio della scuola è situato un bel po’ più alto, costruita a piedi della montagna. Non tutti i pittori del mio paese lì hanno già fatto la mostra. Io invece, sì. Questo mi fa un po’ diverso degli altri.

fwbd3,25, Formery, church of Auverre, oil on cardboard and wood, 36 by 48 cm, 1978 an 2009,

fwbd3,25, Prima Chiesa di Auverre, oli su cartone e legno, 1978 and 2009,

fwbd3,24, Dorfkirche, Öl auf Leinwand, 60 x  70 cm, 2007. Ich will von jedem Dorf wissen, wo es ist. Im Zuge meiner Katalogverteilung an verschiedene Gemeinden, bekam ich wiederholt zur Antwort, da müsse ich schon persönlich kommen. Das könne ich nicht machen, sagte ich zunächst, aber ausgelöst vom Einwand des Bürgermeisters von Mooskirchen „alles geht“, habe ich im Sommer 2007 begonnen, verschiedene Bürgermeister der Steiermark zu besuchen. Inzwischen habe ich von 440 Gemeinden 280 besucht  Einzelheiten dazu folgen bei einzelnen Bildern.

fwbd3,24, Village Church, oil on canvas, 60 cm by 70 cm, 2007. Of each village I want to know where it is. When offering my catalogues to different municipalities, I often heard that I should come and present myself. At the beginning I answered it was impossible for me to visit all the villages and small towns, but I changed my mind when the mayor of Mooskirchen said with certainty “everything is possible”. So I started to visit a great number of mayors in the province of Styria. There are 440 municipalities, I believe, and I have visited 280 of them up to now. If necessary I will go into detail in some texts for particular pictures.

fwbd3,24, Chiesa in un villaggio, olio su tela, 60 x 70 cm, 2007. Di ogni villaggio voglio sapere dov’è situato. Offrendo i miei cataloghi a comuni diversi qualche sindaco mi rispose che era necessario di venire fisicamente. Mi sembrava completamente assurdo di realizzare questo pensiero e dicevo che non era possibile, affinché il sindaco di Mooskirchen dicevo decisamente “tutto è possibile”.  Cominciavo in estato 2007 a visitare le comune della Stiria. Ne sono 440 all’incirca e fin’ ora  ci sono stata in 280. I dettagli in seguito.