Decadência moral

2019 · Acrylic on Canvas · 140 x 75 cm

In Brazil, Christian fundamentalists add up to thirty percent of the population. About two thirds of them voted for Jair Bolsonaro in the 2018 runoff ballot. Bolsonaro promised, among other things, to fight corruption, but also other kinds of “moral decay”, like alcohol consumption, homosexuality and alleged “precocious sexualisation” in schools. On the other hand, he plans the “complete economic development” of the Amazon rainforest, which will inevitably lead to further deforestation and - even violent - displacement of the indigenous population.

The dialogue between the two lumberjacks says:
“What are we actually doing here?”
“We’re fighting moral decay.”

The series „To be continued“ picks up aphorisms from various sources and kicks them up a notch. The works thus created are reminiscent of cartoons, as they were printed in daily newspapers – many of them as serials. Their meaning cannot be clearly deciphered in the first instance. Nevertheless, all content is based on existing background stories or ideas, not on arbitrary associations.

Transhumanism

2019 · Acrylic on Canvas · 140 x 75 cm

It is well known that humans have an open cooling system, which means that they drink and sweat. So what progress would it be for mankind if people could be equipped with a closed radiator system, as we know it from the automobile: The odour nuisance in public transport would be reduced to a minimum and vast amounts of water could be saved, because people would shower very rarely, to name only a few advantages. (Irony off)

The series „To be continued“ picks up aphorisms from various sources and kicks them up a notch. The works thus created are reminiscent of cartoons, as they were printed in daily newspapers – many of them as serials. Their meaning cannot be clearly deciphered in the first instance. Nevertheless, all content is based on existing background stories or ideas, not on arbitrary associations.

Girls just want to have fun (dedicated to Rana Ahmad)

2018 · Acrylic on Canvas · 140 x 75 cm

Did Cindy Lauper and Robert Hazard ever think of religious fundamentalism when they wrote these lines? Almost 30 years after the song has been written, this connection seems to be obvious. Rana Ahmad is the author of the book „Frauen dürfen hier nicht träumen“ (Women must not dream here), in which she describes her path from a strictly religious educated woman to an atheist, who finally fled her homeland Saudi Arabia and now lives in Germany.

The series „To be continued“ picks up aphorisms from various sources and kicks them up a notch. The works thus created are reminiscent of cartoons, as they were printed in daily newspapers – many of them as serials. Their meaning cannot be clearly deciphered in the first instance. Nevertheless, all content is based on existing background stories or ideas, not on arbitrary associations.

Thoughts and Prayers

2018 · Acrylic on Canvas · 140 x 75 cm

After every incident with firearms in the US, those politicians who are in favor of maintaining liberal gun laws assure that “their thoughts and prayers”; are with the victims‘ relatives. Here we hear this phrase from Dana Loesch, the spokeswoman of the National Rifle Association.

The series „To be continued“ picks up aphorisms from various sources and kicks them up a notch. The works thus created are reminiscent of cartoons, as they were printed in daily newspapers – many of them as serials. Their meaning cannot be clearly deciphered in the first instance. Nevertheless, all content is based on existing background stories or ideas, not on arbitrary associations.

Der Tag, an dem die Erde stillstand
(The day the earth stood still)

2018 · Acrylic on Canvas · 140 x 75 cm

In a 1980s schoolbook of physics, a question concerning the principle of linear momentum was: „On earth, thousands of locomotives suddenly set off for the east. How does this affect the rotation of the earth?“

The series „To be continued“ picks up aphorisms from various sources and kicks them up a notch. The works thus created are reminiscent of cartoons, as they were printed in daily newspapers – many of them as serials. Their meaning cannot be clearly deciphered in the first instance. Nevertheless, all content is based on existing background stories or ideas, not on arbitrary associations.

Stairway to Heaven

2018 · Acrylic on Canvas · 140 x 75 cm

A big topic in christian fundamentalist circles in the 1980s was the so-called „backward masking“, i. e. secret messages recorded backwards on records, preferably by hard rock and heavy metal bands which were said to influence the subconscious. Larry Norman, the blonde guy in the picture and a veteran of christian rock music, said at one of his concerts about his fellow believers who thought that this was true: „They say: If you play ‚Stairway to Heaven‘ backwards, the devil speaks to you! Well ... if you play ‚Stairway to Heaven‘ backwards, you hear ‚Dösmögsnös smörebröd‘ ... Doesn’t sound like the devil, sounds like Swedish.“ Note Jimmy Page’s mirror-inverted turntable specially designed to listen to these hidden messages.

The series „To be continued“ picks up aphorisms from various sources and kicks them up a notch. The works thus created are reminiscent of cartoons, as they were printed in daily newspapers – many of them as serials. Their meaning cannot be clearly deciphered in the first instance. Nevertheless, all content is based on existing background stories or ideas, not on arbitrary associations.

One way Ticket

2018 · Acrylic on Canvas · 140 x 75 cm

In a video from the 1950s (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_ClO0uPDxE), a christian preacher talks about the dangers coming from rock ‘n‘ roll music. At the end of his lecture, he says: „Brothers and sisters, I’m talking about lust of the flesh (...) If we give in to the lust of the flesh, brothers and sisters, you might as well go down to the Greyhound bus station and buy you a one way ticket straight to hell.“

The series „To be continued“ picks up aphorisms from various sources and kicks them up a notch. The works thus created are reminiscent of cartoons, as they were printed in daily newspapers – many of them as serials. Their meaning cannot be clearly deciphered in the first instance. Nevertheless, all content is based on existing background stories or ideas, not on arbitrary associations.