“When there’s nowhere to go, we go back to basics“
The sociopolitical tension of recent years and decades has created space for the phenomenon of loss of rationality and a retreat toward esoteric and mythological narratives. In an atmosphere of uncertainty and distrust in facts, fantastical worlds, pseudoreligions, and a resurgence of folk superstition emerge in place of rationality. Attention and discourse pivot from reality to fiction, where the esotericisation of society serves as a direct stance against the economic and social pressures arising from the condition of late-stage capitalism. Fiction transforms into a new reality, and cards laid out on the table foretell the future. You exchange the weight of existence for a fleeting sense of bearability.
The title of the exhibition derives from the concept of a Godly tiller, an oxymoron wherein a divine force simultaneously engages in hard and tiring labor. The metaphor of God then morphs into a form of personal individualism, paganism in which every individual is the architect of their own fortune. Themes of questioning religion, existential void, contemporary meme references, as well as the temptation of fate permeate the entire exhibition.
In paintings referencing gambling parlors and slot machines, Lucia Dubnická tempts fate while critiquing the choices of gamblers. Take a coin and scratch the ticket. Luck. 777. In the works of Pawel Sobczak, we observe a dissolution and a verticality directed toward God. Figures of the Virgin Mary fade beneath dense layers, revealing that even deeply Christian references possess their dark undercurrents. Poland. Fallen Angel. 666. Oskar Felber abandons rationality by layering pop cultural references. In fragmented form, the exhibition presents a survey of his artistic practice, where nineties cartoons and One Winged Baphomet depict a human being glued to the screen. 67.