‘Once the soul was perfect and had wings, it could sour into haven that only creatures with wings can be. But the soul lost its wings and fell to earth where it took an earthly body. Now, while it lives in this body no outward sign of wings can be seen yet the roots of its wings are still there… And we see a beautiful woman or a man, the soul remembers the beauty it used to know in haven, and begins to spout and that makes the soul want to fly but it cannot yet it is still too weak so that man keeps staring up to the sky at a young bird, he lost all interest in the world around…’ (T. Malick, ‘The Knight Of Cups’)
© Gabriele Viertel, Merit Award of Best of Contemporary Photography 2015, Fort Wayne Museum
© Gabriele Viertel
What is the reason that a certain kind of art has got the ability to touch us deeply, move the roots of our humanity, steal our hearts, leave us breathless? A sensational movie ‘The Knight Of Cups’ (2015) by Terence Malick and the philosophical journey that I experienced thanks to it, brought some answers that I want to share with you.
In the movie there is poetry of existence; its unwieldiness and spontaneity, rejecting mummified conventions and structures foreign to it.The surrealism and paradox of choices made throughout the years. The phenomenon of life is in excess of every frame, yet Malick dares to leap into the flux and follow its rhythms.
Floating in the water and diving ‘in the great divide’ has been one of very important, and reoccurring motifs of this Malick’s movie.
According to the major figure in the history of philosophy – Thales, water was the fundamental material of the universe, something out of which everything else could be formed. Something essential to life, and capable of motion and therefore – to change. And as we all know – water has been and will always be the inspiration not only for the philosophers or movie directors – but also for writers, poets and visual artist.
The unique, photo-like structure of the film I’ve recently seen, brought to my mind ‘The Underwater Collection’ called ‘Follow Me To The Depths’ by fine Art Photographer Gabriele Viertel. I have seen those works many month ago – but the images kept ‘hanging on’ in my mind – and I knew the time will come when I come back to them.
(c) Gabriele Viertel
Few weeks ago I had the pleasure to meet Gabriele when I was in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. As a matter of fact her works have been appreciated and recognized worldwide, published by Vogue Italia, Cosmopolitan and the Museum of Modern Art San Fransisco. Artists work is in the public collections of the Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Indiana USA and the University of Art, Rotterdam NL as well as in various private collections.
Regardless of the international success and popularity – one thing is sure – Gabriele’s photography makes you stop and stare. It moves you in a unique way– inviting you to visit a different space where there is no time and where a perfect, strangely exciting female beauty (femme fatale or an angel?) that approaches you – in the movements that reminds you an elegant dance.
Looking into the photography by this German artist means a fascinating encounter with mystical creatures. The unworldly, underwater compositions bring to mind the artworks of the symbolists, the most famous Art Nouveau painters ( popular between 1890 and 1910), for example of Fernand Khnopff or Franz von Stuck.
Franz Von Stuck, ‘The Dancers’, 1986, Private Collection
Similarly to the subject matters that were beautifully explored 100 years ago – Gabriele presents elegant, sublime and mystical women, making the viewer want to uncover the enigmatic truths hidden behind appearances.
Franz Von Stuck, ‘Sin’, 1893, Private Collection
Franz Von Stuck , ‘Salome II’, 1906, Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus – Munich
Viertel’s art challenges the viewers what it is that they really see. Are the models the modern mermaids that live deep under the water or beautiful nymphs that are floating in the cosmic space? Or – perhaps, are they dancers that are too busy to notice the onlooker ?
The intense, sublime and introverted subject matters reflect Gabriele’s own personality – packed with ethereal energy, original talent and fresh ideas that come from fairy tales, the world of fashion (Gabriele used to be a catwalk model for the designers such as Dior or Karl Lagerfeld) and fascination of the artist with the female beauty and classical dance styles.
(c) Gabriele Viertel
Before our my meeting I exchanged few mails with Gabriele and got to learn about more recent work. What my eyes got to see were the sensational, very expressive underwater portraits of two female figures. This how the images talked to me: ‘‘If we are to live exposed to one another, we must admit that part of our identity originates in our vulnerability’ (Achille Mhebe).
Fernand Knopff, Study for ‘Caress’, 1896
The mesmerizing beauty of the models made me think of the emotions their faces and gestures expressed. To me those artworks present an essence of ‘the togetherness and vulnerability’. We observe two beautiful creatures living happily in their underwater world, caressing each other, telling each other secrets and stories. They are ‘at peace and harmony’, reaching the intimate closeness, physically and spiritually, sharing the pure and divine love that Malick beautifully spoke of in his movie:
‘You gave me peace. You gave me what the world can’t give. Mercy. Love. Joy. All else is cloud. Mist. Be with me. Always.’
(c) Gabriele Viertel
(c) Gabriele Viertel
When I first came across the photos of Gabriele Viertel – I was so fascinated with it, that I decided to show them to the Amsterdam based poet, Elly de Waard . To my growing excitement Elly was very enthusiastic about the artworks that she did not know before and allowed me to publish one of her poems from the collection called ‘Nine poems from a sequence of eighty-two’ that I found very ‘corresponding’ with Viertels art.
So beautiful, the way her
Naked body leaps through the
Breakers, her breasts high, her arms
An extension of her back
Reach up. Beneath her skin like
Still never developed
Wings that want to open
Out I see her shoulder blades
Moving briskly. An un-
Disfigured Venus she is,
Rising from the marbled
Foam, alive. Ah, how sweet
The way her softness
Withstands the muscled waves! She
Holds her hands in front of the
Hollows with wiry hair. Rocks
Kneel down before her, resting
Against each other offering
The masterfully polished
Forms of their backs to
Her. In sculpting their masses
The polisher of the tides needed his
Eons, but nature was able
To create her perfection
In a brief thirty-one years.
(c) Elly de Waard
(c) Gabriele Viertel
There is no doubt – the Art by Gabriele Viertel does know how to put spell on your heart. It is like a beautiful, rare pearl at the bottom of the ocean waiting to be found. This art challenges you – telling you that the perfect beauty does exist. It encourages you to look beyond the surfaces and search for the beauty that surrounds you in the ‘real world’. The atmosphere of a magical dream brings delight, it makes you want to unfold the mystery that the life is full of.
So this is how art never ceases to amaze, teach and inspire us. The soul of an artist is a soul that has found its wings and does remember beauty, as if had no other choice:
‘I must see new things and investigate them.
I want to taste dark water and see crackling trees and wild winds’
Egon Schiele
30 October 2016 at 23:29
I like how you make your prose look like the art you are writing about and how you interwind the different words and images to give everything more perspective. Ans most of all I like how you coupled my poem to these photographs of Gabriele Viertel. Beautiful combinations!
Elly de Waard
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1 November 2016 at 16:48
Thank you kindly dear Elly for your meaningful and generous comment – it was indeed my intention to make this piece ‘sound’ of the same ‘notes’ as we can ‘hear’ in the movie of Terence Malick, see on the beautiful photography by Gabriele Viertel – and ‘feel’ while reading the verses of your striking poetry. I do not describe – I write my own ‘interpretation’ that sometimes brings me to surprising conclusions. I cannot thank you enough for allowing me to publish the poem from your collection(<3 <3) – I enjoyed those lines so much that I wanted them to enrich my post in a very special way. I admit – that I am very pleased with the result. We could never forget that 'poetry is the language at its most distilled and most powerful' (Rita Dove)
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31 October 2016 at 00:27
Dear Anna, I love this amazing article. I find that there is absolutely nothing that I can say that could possibly improve the remarkable way in which you lay out the foundation and then define for us all the incredible artistic brilliance of Gabriele Vietel.and how her sensational creativity visualizes,for us, the immortal truths of the deepest human emotions and love.Your exceptional description makes it easy of us to understand these otherwise complicated concepts and how they all relate to humanity. Your use of the works of Franz Von Stuck and Fernand Knopff fit perfectly into your explanations of her incredible work as does the beautiful and thought provoking poem of Elly de Waard. As I view Gabriele’s compelling work and after reading this wonderful article of yours, I realize I am looking at love in one of it purest forms and it is reaching out to me and sending its warmth very deeply into the very essence of my soul.
So very beautifully done Anna. Your articles make a huge difference and you are a real credit to the world of art!
Enjoy your rest of Sunday:)
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1 November 2016 at 16:56
Dear John – it makes me very happy to know that you enjoyed this new post – there is nothing more important for a writer or any other artist – than to know for sure, that his or her efforts, energy and hours of focused work were ‘well invested’, that they do mean something. If my readers tell me that they could learn something new or if my words made them understand ‘what’s beyond that we see’ – that is very satisfactory and rewarding and I could not think of a more beautiful compliment than hearing that my articles ‘make a huge difference’. My only hope is that you’ll enjoy my next posts as much as you did this one. Have a blessed Sunday:):)
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31 October 2016 at 15:32
Anna, there are few in this world who understand the heart and soul of an artist as deeply as you. You are fascinated by our psychology, our motivation and our desire to dread and to love. These are a few of the many reasons why I am enamored with you.
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31 October 2016 at 16:58
*create
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1 November 2016 at 17:07
Dear Monsieur, your comment moves my heart and you are so very right – for me there is nothing more fascinating than the heart, the souls, ‘the inner life’ of inspired artists – that are often misunderstood – not appreciated the way they should, their hypersensitive souls need recognition – and much more than just saying – ‘oh this is beautiful’ – ‘fantastic artwork’ – I am trying to reach deeper into the ‘psyche’ of the ‘rare pearls’ of this world – and I must say it is a fascinating journey as each and every time the meetings, the conversations with artist – or learning about them from the books, movies – I am feeling that my appetite grows. Like I could not get enough. It is so very important to discover what’s our ‘true dedication’ or ‘mission’ in this world that makes our life worth living. To me writing about Art and Artist is that thing that gives me wings to fly. I know you did find ‘your thing’ too, dear Monsieur – and I am very, very happy for you too. One of my favourite American actresses, Jenifer Aniston said once ‘Once you figure out WHO YOU ARE and WHAT YOU LOVE ABOUT YOURSELF, I think it all kind of FALLS INTO PLACE.:):):) Have a beautiful rest of the day!
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31 October 2016 at 17:38
Such beautiful thoughts and reflections! Very well written, Anna!
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1 November 2016 at 17:09
Thank you kindly Tommy for your beautiful comment. Also – good luck with your upcoming exhibition, fingers crossed for its success – have a wonderful Sunday!
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5 November 2016 at 22:58
Thank you Anna!
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1 November 2016 at 16:27
How beautiful the way you combine Terence Malick movie concepts and Elly de Waard poems with the underwater world and beauty of Gabriele Viertel photos. Indeed, you actually show how they taste de dark waters and face wild winds, the same way you dive into their waters.
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1 November 2016 at 17:21
Dear Louis, thank you so much for your kind words – and you are so right – there is so much similarity between ‘diving into the deep waters of the ocean and seeing the beauty of Art – the deeper you go – the more fascinating it all gets. The necessary ‘tool’ in such diving is an open heart and soul – and I am sure that there is so much more that still needs to be discovered. Wishing you a pleasant and relaxing Sunday, I am glad you visited my blog – it’s always wonderful to see you here.:):)
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1 November 2016 at 17:56
Thank you, dear Anna, it’s my pleasure to read your fascinating articles so well written, discovering the beauty of art in such a depth with your open heart and soul and your accurate words. Have a pleasant and relaxing time yourself.
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6 December 2016 at 21:25
Reblogged this on Mr. Modigliani's Private Studio and commented:
For those that do not yet know Anna, she has an innate understanding of the soul of an artist. The artist’s psychology and motivation is her deepest interest and she pursues this subject on a global level with passion and wisdom, as she is an artist herself.
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12 March 2017 at 20:26
Reblogged this on Manolis.
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1 May 2018 at 21:56
Reblogged this on From 1 Blogger 2 Another.
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