Lenny and Mona

Some time ago, during a little get-together, the conversation rolled around to the above mentioned artist and his model. The same old, tiresome question was raised and discussed: Why is Mona Lisa smiling so enigmatically ?
Quite frankly I am getting tired of such useless debates. Who really cares why she smiles.
Maybe Leonardo and Lisa had just had some good sex.
She just smiles! That should be enough.
Shortly after this little party, which was held bilingually, I sat down and wrote the ditties below:

The Painter and his Model

Smile, for heaven's sake
don't always frown,
your angry looks
they get me down.
Don't laugh, don't grin!
Just smile a bit!
But also do not stiffly sit!
You look as I you're in a coma!
So Lenny said to Mona.

The Painter and his hungry Model.

Lenny mixes white and black
while Mona's looking for a snack
What is this constant cry of hunger?
Lenny asks with look of anger.
The painting hasn't started yet
You want already to be fed!
I did not bring you cheese and bread
Come back, next week on Wed-nes-day
when I shall cook with much Hurray
"Last Supper" showing food and drink
a work of art, in just a blink.

Lenny, Mona and the Gap

A little smile! Yes! Just like that!
I'd rather paint you with no hat
Close your lips! Your teeth! don't show them!
The Gap in front could be a problem.
Thus spake Lenny in Verona
to his Model, called just "Mona".

Since this little party was held in English and German, a couple of  German language lines jumped into my idle mind: (English only speakers must patiently forgive)

Der Maler und das hungrige Model

Lenny beugt sich über die Palette
und Mona gern ein Sandwich hätte.
"Was ist's mit Dir und Hungerschrei?
Kaum fängt sie an, die Malerei
und schon verlangst Du was zum Essen
und ich hab Wurst und Brot vergessen.
Du musst hier sein, Mittwoch nächster Woche
weil dann, mit vielem Drum und Dran,
das "Letzte Abendmahl" ich koche.

Die Scharte

Ein kleines Schmunzeln wäre gut.
Ach, ich mal dich lieber ohne Hut !
Zeig' nur die Zähne nicht beim Lachen
Die Lücke könnt uns Sorge machen!
So sprach Lenny in Verona
Zur Bürgerfrau mit Namen "Mona".

During this meet' another useless question was raised: Is the person sitting to the right of Jesus in "The Last Supper" male or female?
Don't worry! I wrote no poems about this question.

Bertstravels

Some Problems

Sigi Kulterer, the internationally renowned Austrian artist shows, for the first time, his series: 
"Some Problems" in which he addresses with  works of his art, the issue of violence against children. Violence brought to bear against the most defenceless members of our society, from sources least expected: From Religious Institutions and from within their own families.One of the most revealing of this artist's works is the one he calls: "the slipped Halo"!

THE SLIPPED HALO

More of those Birds

You don't have to look at them all. Just scroll down!

GOLDFINCHES IN OUR GARDEN

I counted about 25 of these bold flyers.

They do not allow any other birds near the feeder.

Chickadees,  Sparrows or any other type are mercilessly driven off.

These images were taken with a  Nikon D 700

focal length 400 mm, 160 shutter speed,  aperture 5,6, ISO 320

then cropped and sharpened via Picasa.

Bird Mama

Christin fills the bird feeder three to four times a day, 

and if necessary more often!

The birds are greedy and attack the feeder 

as soon as Christin has left.

These feathered bandits will drive us into the poorhouse.

First Snow

First Snow! 19th  November 2018!

I must confess: One half hour later it was all gone.

There were not less than 20 of our feathered friends.

By the time I got my camera, 

this little "Black Capped Chickadee was the only one left.

Winter is a'coming

Snow Geese touch-down

on their way South

(or were they heading North?)

A little brook in Algonquin

As beautiful as it is in Algonquin in the winter,

hiking or staying overnight in a tent is no great fun.

Esther's Wire Animals

I have a good friend. Her name ist Esther. Her dexterity is uncanny.
Don't give her a piece of wire, unless you want her to bend it into an animal!

There are Salamanders

and Frogs

and Flies

and some more Frogs

and Bumble Bees

and if you wait a little, the Salamander

will come down from the tree and rest on some leaves.

Why War?

With a good friend I yesterday attended a lecture at the University of Graz, entitled: 

Warum Krieg?

Überlegungen zu Krieg

und Gewalt aus Kultur-

Soziologischer Perspective

Why War?

Thoughts about War

and Force from a Culture-

Sociological perspective.

I spent a most interesting hour, listening to Professor, Dr. Sabine Haring-Mosbacher speak eloquently about "Force", but little about "War" or the "Whys", the Reasons, for War.

Of course, one might say, that 'War' is 'Force' in its purest form and therefore Professor Mosbacher spoke indirectly also about War. Be this as it may. I enjoyed the Professor's lecture and learnt from it.  In preparation for this Lecture I did a little thinking and a little research and I came up with the following:

"Why War?"

This question inevitably leads me to the even more important consideration: "How to avoid War?"

In order to consider 'avoidance'  we must, I believe, first contemplate the 'Why'.

The starting point for such considerations must be an examination of the relationship between "Right" and "Might". Whereby the "Might" could, or should be replaced by the word: "Force".

Conflicts of Interests and the consequent Confrontations may be resolved by civilized discussions, or, as has been shown more frequently in the course of human history, by the use of force, brute force.

A resolution of the conflict of interests is sought, but rarely achieved.

In the beginnings of human history, such conflicts, mostly questions of geographic superiority,  were settled by "muscle-power". Soon Man discovered the use of tools to be more effective  than the naked fist and he diligently began using those, from the sharp stone to the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile.

It was, of course, most often the stronger power, or the power who believed itself to be stronger, who commenced hostilities.

Economic issues were not exclusively the reasons for War. 

Often there were religious disputes which made the use of force and the killing of the opponent  seem desirable and unavoidable. 

It is, however, my opinion that in many cases religious differences were used  as a pretext by the leadership to whip  the common citizens  into a frenzy of killing. 

If a Duke or a King had asked his people, to move to war in order for Him to enrich his own coffers,  he would likely not have reached the same degree of enthusiasm, as if he had told them that this herd of "unbelieving zealots" was about to desecrate the memory of their God and His Son.

How else would it be possible to whip the "great mass" into a frenzy and, almost foaming at the mouth, begin a wave of killing?

This then brings to mind the huge congregation in, for instance, Nürnberg, during which Hitler or Göbels called for "Total War" although the loss of this killing spree was already written large on the walls and on the bombastic columns surrounding the square, and the hundreds of thousands assembled, screaming "Heil" until their throats were raw.

It also brings to mind the Italian and Austrian soldiers, who, during the First World War, allowed themselves to be driven into hopeless battles to conquer the next mountain top in order to place another medal of bravery upon the chest of the General, who sent them to their death. 

I think of the brutality of the American Civil War and the recent killings in the battles of the Balkan wars.

How, let me ask it again, is this possible?

I believe, and I am not alone in this belief, that there is an instinct, a compulsion deep within the human psyche, which compels the bearer to hate and destroy, and which turns the many into the serfs and henchmen of the evil minded agitator.

Thus it is and it will remain so until some fundamental insight, enlightenment, seeps through to the basic understanding of man's own psyche.

In or about 1884, in what was then Persia, the religious founder, Baha'u'llah said:

"The World is but one Country and Mankind its Citizens."

He also called for the establishment of an 

"International House of Justice", 

which was to arbitrate all international disputes. 

In order for such an Institution to be successful, all countries would have to be prepared to subjugate their own interests to its judgment.

We recognize, of course, the difficulties connected with such forfeiture of  sovereignty, but in the final analysis, it must come to pass, in spite of language, cultural, even racial differences, that such sovereignty must first be limited and finally abolished.

The Democratic, Constitutional State must become the Democratic Constitutional Continent and finally must be extended to the Democratic Constitutional World.

In a letter to Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud wrote: The abolishing of wars is surely the highest duty of today's mankind, because "every human has a right for his own life, and because wars destroy hoping and promising lives and because wars denigrate man* and force him* against his better judgment and will to kill other human beings.

In his lengthy and thoughtful answer, Albert Einstein replied: 

"As long as international conflicts are not subject to arbitration and the enforcement of decisions arrived at by arbitration is not guaranteed, and as long as war production is not prohibited, we may be sure that war will follow upon war.

Unless our Civilisation achieves the moral strength to overcome this evil, it is bound to share the fate of former civilisations: Decline and Decay".

Bertstravels

is not as smart 

as the above quoted 3 gentlemen,

but he agrees fully 

with their expressed opinions!

* I am certain that Sigi, in his mind, included the words "and women"  and "him and her"...

In Sigi's days, Men went to war, while women stayed home and tended the fire in the hearth.

NEW TIMES BIG BAND

Five Saxes (2 Tenor, 2 Alto, 1 Baritone) Four Trombones, Four Trumpets, Keyboard, Bass, Guitar, Drums and Percussion, 18 first class musicians, make the "New Times Big Band", under the leadership of Markus Geiselhart, who visited Bleiburg yesterday.
They were accompanied by the vocal sextett, the "Voxon" and all together they made some memorable music.
As the lead-in we heard the wonderful Glenn Miller tune: "Moonlight Serenade" and toward the end it was good old "Chattanooga Choo-Choo" which set us Oldies dreaming.

Markus Geiselhart, composer, arranger, conductor

and his New Times Big Band.

Wonderful Soloists

 on the Tenor Sax, the Trombone and the Trumpet

put the Jazz-Horns onto the Band.

The excellent vocal group,

 "The Voxons"

took the place of "the Modernaires".

MARKUS GEISELHART  

AND 

THE NEW TIMES BIG BAND:

What is "Faith?"

Once again we discussed the "non-discussible".. and I am reminded of having written about it once before. So, here it is: 

What is Faith?

A long ranging discussion lead us exactly nowhere, since there are many different interpretations of this concept.

I share the interpretation of the British Philosopher, Bertrand Russel, who, along with many other thinkers maintained that “we may define “faith” as a firm belief in something for which there is no evidence. Where there is evidence, no one speaks of “faith”. We do not speak of “faith” that two and two make four, or that the Earth is round. We only speak of “faith” when we wish to substitute emotion for evidence.”

Others described “faith” as a process of active non-thinking, of the acceptance of ideas not only in the absence of evidence, but in fact sometimes in spite of existing evidence to the contrary.

In the Roman Catholic Faith, for instance, it is necessary to believe that during the celebration of a Holy Mass, the waver of bread actually changes into the body of Jesus Christ, while the sip of Red Wine within the chalice changes into the actual blood of the “Son of God”. Now, this requires a good portion of “Faith.”

In both, the Catholic, as well as in the Protestant version of Christianity, Faith is an absolute necessary ingredient of getting to heaven.

The big difference, as I understand it, is, that The Roman Catholic teaching requires Faith and Good Works, while the Protestants and in particular the “Born Again Christians” require Faith alone.

In both cases “Faith” is the number one requirement. Without Faith, there is no ticket to Heaven. There is only the slippery Road to Hell.

Billy Graham, surely one of the most important proponents of the “born again doctrine” said this in his book ”How to be born again”: While morality or Do-Goodness may win the approval of men, it is not acceptable to God, nor does it reflect His full moral demands.

Now we come to a very tricky part: You or I can decide to do good works. I or you may make a decision to feed the hungry and cloth the naked to the extent of our ability and without hesitation we may go about doing exactly that. But we just don't believe that Jesus is the Son of God, in fact we are not even sure that there is an entity with all the powers of a God. We just lack that “Faith.”

How about Faith? Can you decide tomorrow to have Faith? Can I truly state that as of right now I will have the degree of Faith required to achieve heaven? I can do that no more than I can decide that tomorrow I will have green eyes, and as of right now I shall be 6' 6” !

Now I have to decide to believe ( have Faith ) in something for which there is not one shred of evidence, which, in fact, often is contrary to existing evidence.

The absurdities, contradictions, and downright inanities of the entire Bible are, for me, completely impossible to believe.

Do I believe in the existence of God? There is no evidence! Therefore I cannot be a Theist.

Do I believe in the non-existence of God? There is also no evidence! Therefore I cannot be an Atheist!

Bertstravels

is left with the little but honest corner of the Agnostic.

Winter has come with a vengeance

Yesterday the sun shone from a cloudless sky!

Today?

Just kidding!

This is last winter's picture.

Arnulf Rainer, the Great Artist

The “Artist” to end all “Artists”.

Anything I will state in the following lines is, of course, my very own, personal opinion. Only concepts which may undergo scientific scrutiny will I call “facts”...everything else, pretty well, is “my opinion”.

Having said that, let me talk to you about “Arnulf Rainer”. Rainer, borne in 1929 is a world renowned Austrian painter.

Now let it be said that Austria has produced more than its share of wonderfully talented artists in all the arts, specifically in the art of painting. I won't list any of them. If you want to know about them, go to your local library or google “Austrian Painters”.

Below here you will see three of his works, which I photographed from a book of paintings, called :”The Power of the Picture” (Die Macht des Bildes.)

Rainer will take one of his earlier paintings, or a photograph and commence to “overpaint” this work. In other words he will cover the earlier painting or photograph with paint. This, he claims, is a very slow process, since he has to observe the original work until a section “offends him”. Then he will paint over this segment. Whereupon, one presumes, he waits until another section of this to be “over painted” work offends him, which he then quickly “overpaints”....In this way, finally, grows a mono-coloured canvass, with often a little corner not “overpainted” so as to see the original work.

The “artist”, in other words, takes a brush in hand, dips it into a can of paint and covers a photograph.

Sometimes he does not bother to cover the whole area with paint, but simply defaces it with a few quick strokes, somewhat in the way “Zoro” slashed his Z into a tree or onto the chest of one of his hapless opponents.

The resulting work is then placed into a frame and exhibited in the most renowned galleries, where people come, pretending to be in total awe, paying sky high prices for “an original Rainer”.

The owners of the chosen galleries evidently pay good money to “art critics” who write in the most glowing terms about these creations. Let me translate for you one of these unreal tidbits of utter nonsense:

“In a way, which in our time stands alone, his work is the expression of a spiritual world, for which language proves to be inadequate. Even the methods, the observation of form, the analysis of style being made available, make possible at best an approximation of the approximate.”

What was this again? This sentence is constructed about as artfully as one of Rainer's paintings, and says about as much.

Then Rainer painted among many many other “works of art” a painting he called : “Cross”

It, as you can also see below consists of a black square with black paint dripping off it onto another smaller square. Read what the “artist” himself says about this work:

“Because of dissatisfaction I constantly corrected the pictures until they started to become darker and darker. So started, without large concepts the 'over paintings'”

Another art critic allowed himself the following rhapsodic comment:

“The drama of the world reveals itself slowly, inexorably, into the silence of a secret, which possesses its superior power in the hiddenness.

I could go on and on quoting nonsense which has been said or written about this body of work.

Then Rainer came up with something so audacious as to almost defy description:

He spread some paint onto a canvass or a piece of paper, dipped his fingers into the paint and dragged them up and down and every-which-way. He called these abominations “Fingerschmiererein”...

translated into English: “Fingersmearings.” No high and mighty artistic titles to deceive the viewing public. No, he called them what they are: “The artless smearing of fingers through paint.”.

It seems to me that he said to his admiring fans: “You are so utterly stupid, that you will pay me large sums of money, even though I tell you that these are simply “fingersmearings”, having nothing whatever to do with the creative process.”

And of course, good old Arnulf was right. He is one of the highest priced “Smearers of Paint” in all of Europe.

Bertstravels

Wonders about the Emperor's New Clothes

Each of the above "paintings" has a title, which, because of its meaninglessness escapes me for the moment.

Autumn on Trout Lake

Autumn, somewhere in Algonquin

The Climber and the Jumper

Free climbing: not as dangerous as it seems!

If you fall, you hit the water.

Climbing gear left on top

there's no return!

Splash

Our Neighbour's Woodshed

I hope he won't tear it down

Milkweed Couple

Mr. and Mrs. Milkweed, on their way to the Opera!

Mrs. Milkweed at Intermission, coming from the Ladies' Room.

Mrs. Milkweed coming from the Ladies' room during intermission

?