Yuval Barel

'The treacherous prehistoric Splinter' deepens the messianic idea found in the file 'At the Gates of the Transparent Garden.' The concept of prophecy-betrayal is acutely revealed here, serving as a personal and genuine urge to distance oneself from painting—a withdrawal that encompasses aesthetics, formality, and almost a phonetic retreat.

Far removed from the bourgeois comforts of life, cliffs of recognition stand tall, resembling deserts of language and non-language. These desolate landscapes radiate a dark aura upon those who traverse them. The profound significance of this idea is underscored, revealing its essence and point. In the obscurity, one can even envision sins that bring salvation, and within the darkness of existence, one may hear the humming of hopes. In the final days, this rose among roses reemerges as just that, a rose among roses. (Even more audaciously, like wheat in a wheat field—domesticated, the mother of bread, civilization!) This negative revelation signifies a complete departure from the binary and meaning, delicately connecting in an almost imperceptible manner, sketching a subversive manifesto, reluctant as a crooked snake.

'The mythical god, the plastic world, the tragic man—these fragments are in our hands' (P. Rosenzweig, from 'The Star of Redemption'). Here, I endeavor to transcend the plastic world and enter the realm of revelation and wonder. I aim to measure the distance between the mundane and the mythic, extracting insights about individuals and, particularly, the spirit of our time. In an age where the narrative, prosaic interval between the everyday and the myth defines the contemporary. I do not seek a connection between the parts but rather an exploration of their interrelationships, affinities, and their manifestations in various ethical and theological concepts, in Nazi posters and early twentieth-century cartoons, in Jewish myths, in Gothic symbols devoid of their original context, in bio-social illusions, and more.