NARZISS UND GOLDMUND
2020 - 2022 | oil on canvas | canvas size 61 x 75 cm | 24" x 29.5" | with frame 89.5 x 104.5 cm | 35.2" x 41.1"
«Everything that was alive and radiant about this young man spoke so clearly: he bore all the signs of a strong person, richly gifted in the senses and in the soul, perhaps an artist, but in any case a person of great love power, whose destiny and happiness consisted in being flammable and to be able to indulge. Why was this loving person, this person with those fine, rich senses, who could experience and love the scent of flowers, a morning sun, a horse, a bird's flight or music so deeply, why was he obsessed with becoming a spiritual person and an ascetic?»
​
In these words the character Narziss describes his companion Goldmund, the two protagonists in Hermann Hesse's 1930 novel Narziss und Goldmund. The young Goldmund, soon after having processed the differences between him and Narziss and having accepted the purposelessness of longing to resemble him, frees himself from his false ecclesiastic ambitions in order to look life in the face, encounter love and pain, find meaning and ultimately himself. And while in the beginning of the novel it is him who feels inferior in comparison to his friend - the friar and theorist Narziss - striving for his love and recognition, it is the latter who - after many years - looks upon his own sheltered existence with inferiority and regret, and confesses his respect and love and for the other.
The painting Narziss and Goldmund deals with those topics of identity and self worth in a highly symbolical way. Though the two figures in the painting can be identified as the characters Narziss and Goldmund, their assigment to each one has been purposefully left ambiguous. The real center of the image lies in the gesture of the left figure's hand, and their little finger subtly reaching towards that of the other. The left figure however appears unbothered. The mask in their hand and the big flower that blossoms where their head should be implies a sort of revelation - how they reveal their true self and potential that laid hidden behind the secrecy of a mask. The bumblebee sitting on the mask's edge gives a further hint on how the left figure is associated with nature; moving away from the artifice that used to cover their countenance. Equally the color of their skin is warm and lively. The figure is comfortably positioned in the foreground, casually leaning against the arm of the sofa and turning their flowery head straight towards the viewer, as if they had revealed themselves to them. The right figure on the other hand sits stiffly, turning their head towards the other, as well as reaching out to them with their hand. Unlike the left figure, it is unclear what lies beneath their mask, as it covers not only the face but the entire head, wrapping it in sparkling rhinestones. Nevertheless it is their pointy fingers and the little thorns that grow out of them which reveal their identity as another humanoid-flower, much like the other one. The darkness of the fingertips as well as the overall colder and lighter color of their skin differ from the other figure, and add a darker undertone to their character. The entire painting is covered in a rose-colored hue that adds a dream-like atmosphere to the image and helps to locate it in a realm of visions and ideas rather than in the physical world.
2020 - 2022 | oil on canvas | 61 x 75 cm | 24" x 29.5" | embroidered tulle and lace gowns by Chanel Haute Couture 2018
2020 - 2022 | oil on canvas | 61 x 75 cm | 24" x 29.5" | embroidered tulle and lace gowns by Chanel Haute Couture 2018
2020 - 2022 | oil on canvas | 61 x 75 cm | 24" x 29.5" | embroidered tulle and lace gowns by Chanel Haute Couture 2018
2020 - 2022 | oil on canvas | 61 x 75 cm | 24" x 29.5" | embroidered tulle and lace gowns by Chanel Haute Couture 2018
The artist made a very liberal approach to the interpretation of the Hesse's novel and added a symbolic level that corresponds with his own experience and relation to the story, instead of aiming at creating a literal depiction of it. The delicately crafted CHANEL dresses from the Spring/Summer 2018 Haute Couture collection shown in the gardens of Versailles and the iconic Maison Martin Margiela rhinestone embellished mask correspond with the artist's love for attention to detail. Each bead and lace motif has been meticulously depicted. The conscious decision to dress both figures in couture for women and therefore assigning them to the female sex supports the novel's underlying homoerotic ambiguity (though reversed), while simultaneously remaining elegantly discreet.