The exhibition “You are beautiful, too” comprises eight drawings and five paintings by Torsten Slama in which his efforts to formulate a semi-documentary form of realism merge with his preoccupation with themes which, for lack of a better term, might be called “spiritual” - a word which stands in for all which can be perceived, yet has little or no empirical or factual or logical existence. Even a casual observer will immediately comprehend that in this exhibition two seemingly contrasting worlds are combined. The world of design, of logic, the world of human engineering, and the world of belief, of fate, of religion. Also, the world of personal authorship and of artisanal creation. The world of 20th century “Church Architects”, the world of often unnamed master builders, masons, etc.. The world of vintage cars, carrying on a tradition of horse carriages, of artisanal decoration, of what we now perceive as “quaintness”, and the world of contemporary power or propulsion machines. Both worlds, both concepts of creation are important. Both have value, both are beautiful.

Here could follow now a brief description of Torsten Slama’s speculations about a meaningful or contemporary form of religion. A form of Tellurialism, extended to cosmic proportions, were all is part of one big all - encompassing and necessarily single entity, which is God. God will not respond to prayers. God just exists, like a cow exists, like we exist. It, God, just happens to be the largest of all organisms. (What is an organism, by the way? Just a concept.) Nothing larger exists. That is why it is called God. No belief in afterlife or reanimation can give us what we need. Even the soul is an empty concept. All we need is an acceptance, a willingness to be at ease with all things going on. Science is beautiful, religion is beautiful. Technology (or whatever masquerades under this term) is beautiful. Nature is beautiful. All animals are beautiful, and you are beautiful, too.

 

You are Beautiful, too

a poem for an exhibition... on the theme of a flock of sparrows joined by one escaped canary and the author feeding birds Six times seven-teen Have you seen? Rhymes make happy times The sparrows look at me and beg While I stand solemnly on just one leg With tiny beaks they eat and tweet And stand on tiny sparrow’s feet “You are not dressed in colours gay But you prefer plain brown and grey!” “And in this humble earth-toned frock You like to roll and like to rock”

“You dance and frolic so around I see the birds, but not the ground” Then the crumbs are eaten all And I stand lean, and stiff, and tall The sparrows have eaten and flown away And left me feathers, brown and grey (Oh you creatures of the sky! Will ever we see from eye to eye?) Only a yellow canary Stayed behind, and looks at me I wonder, when the sparrows look at you What do they think? You’re beautiful, too?