STEFAN ARTENI

THE WAY OF FORM - A RETROSPECTIVE

Part I

Q C C ART GALLERY Queensborough Community College - The City University of New York
december 2005 - march 2006

A presentation designed by the artist

www.stefanarteni.net
The Polyphonic Monologue Addressing the Intersection of Art and
Meditative Spirituality at the Heart of Form
Stefan Arteni [statement]

When is art art at all?

After the Century of the Avantgardes what can be more outrageous and unheard-of than a virtual space of
re-Traditionalization?

I propose a poly-contextural stylistic matrix, the transclassic operational interplay of a heterarchy of coexisting
complementary artistic domains and formal systems, a simultaneous plurality of interwoven recursive and permutative
differences. The stress on visual interfaces, discontinuity and metamorphoses, is underpinned by an evasive and implied
topography of moveable roots and pasts. By the geographic accident of locating one's origins in a borderland, one becomes a
dweller of the in-between and of the margins. This entails a foundational polyglotism across cultural and artistic habitats.
The existential chronotope hinges on the emergence of fractality that encompasses networked systems where thresholds
change the nature of relationships between formal repertoires.

From the beginning, a translocal multi-identiy web and a recursiveness of identity recreation, a being between and astride
cultures and moving across languages and visual contextures set side by side, imply a second-order perspective, an
experiential metacultural sensibility - that is a shift toward looking at the gaze itself. An inner metalanguage, multiple
inheritances and multiple codings, are at work. Second-order culture delineations are continuously reconstructed. The new
entities produced by the peripatetic impulse open up a situational space which revels in the freedom of a horizonal
in-between transcending untranslatable knots - a polyphonic monologue.

West, East, Far East The form of the form

It is time to demand once again a maximum of complexity from the artwork. It is time to use again constraints in order
to expand the room of art. Art can be reconnected with the chain of predecessors by reclaiming and renewing archaic
memory, by restoring a larger and deeper constellation of sense beyond egolatry and egophany and beyond dominant
ideologems. Zen emphasizes a transhistorical present in terms of an ever-renewable cyclicality, such as the play of
condensed and interwoven mythologems, the return of recalcitrant myth, the cultural matrix concerned with
archetypal fields and with damnation and redemption, the matrix which has survived displaced or camouflaged in
contemporary secular culture or as a secular caricature, lurking in the subterranean memory and waiting to spring
forth. Experience-oriented spirituality in Eastern and Far Eastern practices come together in layers of complexity and
inspiration that resonate beyond the temporal realm. Continual endless juxtapositions explore ways to manipulate and
restructure perception. The mark appears as a chronotopic palimpsest, the gesture as immediate enstatic experience.

The new is there with the old, for with the first gesture all is already painted, even though all is still to be painted.
Well then, so call they, the swirlers out
of the mist of my soul,
They that come mewards, bearing old
magic
Ezra Pound
Welcome to the Way of Form. The purpose of this presentation is to
draw the outline of a poly-contextural stylistic matrix, the transclassic
operational interplay of a heterarchy of coexisting complementary
artistic domains and formal systems - a metapainting which thematizes
painting itself. It has its roots in East-Central European culture. This is
an area of the world that had always been powerless and faced with
CHOICELESS CHOICES, a world where man falls into a kind of new
a-historicity as a paradoxical result of history. Metaphysical ruins,
fragmentation and incohesion, and the existential emptiness are
logical consequences and lasting scars.

The dictate of reality becomes unbearable and the adequate answer to

the unbearable reality is the reality of virtual irreality, form, the plural
and protean, polymorphous and ludic, and yet unified, idiolectal
painting which maps aggressively its own painterly act.

Victor Turner opines that liminality is a fertile nothingness, a

storehouse of possibilities. We narrate and continue narrating myths
about ourselves, narrating ourselves as myth, writes R. Daskalov. The
artist is cast in the role of a wanderer. It is a journey echoing the myth
of Ulysses, a quest leading the artist to addressing the intersection of
art and meditative spirituality at the heart of form. Beyond or behind
signs there is a fundamental asemic reality that is simply ‘there’ and
with which one can make direct contact. The late writer Danilo Kis
defines "form as possibility of choice, form that is an attempt to locate
points of fulcrum in the chaos around us."
 Mural projects.
Mural projects.
The art of mural
The art of mural
decoration,frescoes
decoration,frescoes
and mosaics, and
and mosaics, and
the shimmering of
the shimmering of
material kaleidoscopic
material kaleidoscopic
color leaping out with
color leaping out with
the vibrancy of a
the vibrancy of a
polychrome relief, is
polychrome relief, is
pan-Mediterranean and
pan-Mediterranean and
pan-artistic.
pan-artistic.
The preparatory cartoni
The preparatory cartoni
for Orpheus, a
for Orpheus, a
projected sequence of six
projected sequence of six
site-specific mural panels,
site-specific mural panels,
have been executed in a
have been executed in a
mixed technique on
mixed technique on
eighteen sheets of paper
eighteen sheets of paper
using a limited palette.
using a limited palette.
Only a few are exhibited
Only a few are exhibited
here. The logic of ambiguity,
here. The logic of ambiguity,
of equivocality, of polarity,
of equivocality, of polarity,
with the shiftings and
with the shiftings and
tensions organizing its
tensions organizing its
polysemy, is inherent in
polysemy, is inherent in
myth. This polysemy
myth. This polysemy
accounts for the signs
accounts for the signs
taking on —
taking on —
often simultaneously —
often simultaneously —
various values of meaning.
various values of meaning.
Most of the images of an
Most of the images of an
owl in ancient Greece
owl in ancient Greece
simply represent Athena.
simply represent Athena.
In Neolithic Southeast
In Neolithic Southeast
Europe the Great Goddess
Europe the Great Goddess
as a symbol of death
as a symbol of death
is represented as an owl.
is represented as an owl.
The owl is still known
The owl is still known
in the Balkans as a
in the Balkans as a
harbinger of death.
harbinger of death.
 Myth. Given the remarkable interest
Myth. Given the remarkable interest
in Greek myth shown by film makers,
in Greek myth shown by film makers,
producers and directors, from Cine
producers and directors, from Cine
Città to Hollywood, it should appear
Città to Hollywood, it should appear
surprising that so few contemporary
surprising that so few contemporary
painters have explored the polyvalent
painters have explored the polyvalent
implications of the theme of the
implications of the theme of the
descent to and ascent from a variety
descent to and ascent from a variety
of underworlds, the nostos theme and
of underworlds, the nostos theme and
its Odyssean substratum, blood
its Odyssean substratum, blood
sacrifices with cosmogonic
sacrifices with cosmogonic
connections, or, to put it in the words
connections, or, to put it in the words
of Vytautas Kavolis, the demonic in
of Vytautas Kavolis, the demonic in
the self, the tragic contingencies of a
the self, the tragic contingencies of a
ritualized ethnocosmology which
ritualized ethnocosmology which
persists even where radical
persists even where radical
circumstances have uprooted entire
circumstances have uprooted entire
social systems. Mircea Eliade argues
social systems. Mircea Eliade argues
that "the camouflage…of spiritual
that "the camouflage…of spiritual
meanings… characterizes all
meanings… characterizes all
crepuscular eras". Condensed and
crepuscular eras". Condensed and
interwoven, mythologems lurk in the
interwoven, mythologems lurk in the
subterranean memory and wait to
subterranean memory and wait to
spring forth.
spring forth.

Oedipus of Thebes, whose name translates as 'swollen foot', is a legend possibly derived from a story that originated in ancient Egypt. Akhenaten, the controversial
and enigmatic heretic king, is considered to be the historical model of legendary Oedipus. What makes Oedipus a hero, in the end, is that the sightless man finally 'sees'.
"My will was never in my deeds…I have overcome destiny, I have defeated the gods," declares Enesco‘s Oedipus.
Orpheus, the Thracian singer who tamed wild beasts with his music, is an evanescent boundary figure located between history and
legend. The numerous antique wall paintings, mosaic floors, and relief sculptures of Orpheus were, of course, only a symbolic
allusion to his function as a savior who managed to enter the underworld and come out alive.
 Abduction of Europa.
In all the Mediterranean world
there are traces of a bull-cult, the
sacred bull or auroch, the
sacrificial bull whose blood is a
giver of life. Europa, abducted by
Zeus transformed into a sacred
bull, became the first queen of
Crete. She is the sister of dragon-
slaying Cadmus, who brought
the Phoenician alphabet to
Greece. At the deepest structural
level, this myth parallels the flow
of civilization and early
technology (accompanied by the
alphabet and resulting literacy)
from east to west, crossing from
the Near East and Asia to
Europe. Amoretti and putti are a
classical motif appropriated by
Renaissance artists. These small
winged babies usually
accompany Cupid and are
emblematic of the intents of
Zeus.
 Diana and Actaeon.
Artemis (or Diana in Latin,) the Goddess of the moon and hunting, the Mistress of the Animals, the Mistress of the whole of wild nature, is a nurturer and destroyer.
Actaeon was a hunter who stumbled on Diana bathing in the woods, only to be transformed into a stag devoured by his own dogs. Through the early modern period,
a darker paraphrase of Actaeon appears in the works of Marlowe and Shakespeare, working on multiple levels simultaneously and connected to the cult of
Queen Elizabeth as Diana. Other parallel treatments appear in art, including Bethsabe watched by king David, and the story of Suzanna and the Elders.
 The visual polyvalence of conventionalized and
deracinated formal processes has only a compositional
function.
The interlacing of brush force and brush kinematics plays
with the drift of form, the limit point when a gestalt
organized visually and spatially by integration and
segregation
is no longer tenable as an idealized cognitive model.
 Golden section. The ancient discovery. of harmonic proportion in music was translated to proportion in art. The early Renaissance
Golden section. The ancient discovery. of harmonic proportion in music was translated to proportion in art. The early Renaissance
architect Alberti credited the harmony of Roman architecture and the universe to this system. The Renaissance architect Palladio,
architect Alberti credited the harmony of Roman architecture and the universe to this system. The Renaissance architect Palladio,
along with Venetian musical theorists, developed a more complex system of harmonic proportion based on the major and minor
along with Venetian musical theorists, developed a more complex system of harmonic proportion based on the major and minor
third. Cognitive science and the bourgeoning field of neuroaesthetics seek today to explain the neurological basis of art and art
third. Cognitive science and the bourgeoning field of neuroaesthetics seek today to explain the neurological basis of art and art
perception - brainwaves appear related to the Golden Ratio, while the Fibonacci fractal sequence is connected to the Mandelbrot
perception - brainwaves appear related to the Golden Ratio, while the Fibonacci fractal sequence is connected to the Mandelbrot
set. Visual design is based on modularity and multi-modularity systems, starting, on the one hand, from a 'visual grammar' , such
set. Visual design is based on modularity and multi-modularity systems, starting, on the one hand, from a 'visual grammar' , such
as the Golden Mean or Golden Ratio and Alberti's harmonic proportion systems, or, on the other hand, converging to the proportion
as the Golden Mean or Golden Ratio and Alberti's harmonic proportion systems, or, on the other hand, converging to the proportion
values known as the Golden Ratio. The organization matrices demonstrate the notions of self-similarity, metapatterning and
values known as the Golden Ratio. The organization matrices demonstrate the notions of self-similarity, metapatterning and
ambiguous boundaries. Some artists used them as an instrument, the Parisian cubists for example. Henri Cartier-Bresson used the
ambiguous boundaries. Some artists used them as an instrument, the Parisian cubists for example. Henri Cartier-Bresson used the
Golden Rectangle in photography, but, afterall, he was trained as a painter. The ancient sense of the word 'symmetry' is proportion.
Golden Rectangle in photography, but, afterall, he was trained as a painter. The ancient sense of the word 'symmetry' is proportion.
Dynamic symmetry, dissymmetry, fuzzy symmetry, may be used in combined forms. Perspective constructs also appear to be
Dynamic symmetry, dissymmetry, fuzzy symmetry, may be used in combined forms. Perspective constructs also appear to be
symmetry operations preserving certain features [György Darvas]. Topological symmetry consists of transformation in which the
symmetry operations preserving certain features [György Darvas]. Topological symmetry consists of transformation in which the
neighborhood relations are intact.
neighborhood relations are intact.

Within the organization

system the artist uses a
recursive dynamic stochastic
operational algorithm for
generating medium
constrained structures which
must be interpreted in the
context of perceptographic
domain knowledge to produce
a symbolic representation. As
Leonid Tchertov puts it, the
perceptographic code is a
characteristic of form.
 Metapictorial
Metapictorialwork
workisisaamodern
moderncondition
conditionofofArt.
Art.
Victor
VictorStoichita
Stoichita

Collage
Collagebased
basedseries
series
AAfew
fewseries
seriesof
ofwoks
woksarearebased
basedononpreliminary
preliminarycollage
collagestudies
studiesand
andbozzetti.
bozzetti.The
Theself-
self-
reflexivity
reflexivityof
ofthe
thegaze
gazeisisexternalized
externalizedwith
withsubtlety
subtletyand
andresonance
resonancebybymeans
meansofofpractices
practices
which
which aim to recognize both semiotic flexibility and planned semiotic recycling,that
aim to recognize both semiotic flexibility and planned semiotic recycling, thatisisto
to
say an open-ended interpretive appropriation and an ironic detournement of
say an open-ended interpretive appropriation and an ironic detournement of visual visual
repertoires
repertoiresand
andtropes
tropesand
andtheir
theirformal
formalmutation,
mutation,transposition
transpositionand
andtransubstantiation.
transubstantiation.

The
Theongoing
ongoingmontage
montageconcentrates
concentratesattention
attentionononthe
thepicture
pictureas
asaaludic
ludicsurface
surfaceand
andaa
recombinant
recombinantform-space,
form-space,asasaacontained
containedmultiplicity
multiplicityconsisting
consistingofofvisual
visualcollages
collagesof
of
reworked pieces of commodity culture, and, in analogy with music, citations,
reworked pieces of commodity culture, and, in analogy with music, citations, self- self-
citations,
citations, and
andformal
formalvariations.
variations. The
Thesymptoms
symptomsof ofmeta-artistic
meta-artisticawareness
awarenessandandreflection
reflection
form a net of intrinsically alternating and/or integrated references, extrapolations,
form a net of intrinsically alternating and/or integrated references, extrapolations,
derivations
derivationsand
andtransgressions.
transgressions.Style
Style functions
functionsasascontent.
content.
 Portraits Series.The geographer
Portraits Series.The geographer
Emblem books of the sixteenth and seventieth centuries have revealed the contradictory symbolism of the terrestrial globe: the sphere as image of harmony
Emblem books of the sixteenth and seventieth centuries have revealed the contradictory symbolism of the terrestrial globe: the sphere as image of harmony
and completeness of the universe, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, the revolving spinning sphere suggestive of the ephemeral, unstable Creation, and
and completeness of the universe, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, the revolving spinning sphere suggestive of the ephemeral, unstable Creation, and
the vanity of worldly things. The globe is a tool of learning and also an emblem of power. In Renaissance portraiture and 'impersonation' portraits, exact
the vanity of worldly things. The globe is a tool of learning and also an emblem of power. In Renaissance portraiture and 'impersonation' portraits, exact
replication is not the goal. Often the portraits have a ritual or commemorative function.
replication is not the goal. Often the portraits have a ritual or commemorative function.
Vanitas
Vanitas
Series.The
Series.The
primary
primarytheme themeofof
aaVanitas
Vanitastype type
still-life is the
still-life is the
delight
delightofofthe the
senses:
senses: musictoto
music
bebeheard,
heard,- -string
string
instruments
instruments
especially
especiallyare areaa
symbol
symbolofof
harmony
harmony- -wine wine
and
andfruit
fruittotobebe
tasted, and the
tasted, and the
feel
feelofofvarious
various
fabrics.
fabrics.
Interwoven
Interwovenwith with
the
thefirst
firsttheme,
theme,
the
thework
workisisalso
alsoaa
systematic
systematic
documenting
documentingofof
the
thepassing
passingofof
such
suchpleasures
pleasures
and
and thetransience
the transience
ofoflife:
life:dusk
dusksetssets
in, the wine glass
in, the wine glass
isishalf
halfempty,
empty,the the
bust
bustofofAugustus
Augustus
signifies
signifiesthe the
waning
waningofofglory glory
and of Empires.
and of Empires.
A Vanitas type composition showcases the highly conventionalized character of realism initially
developed in Dutch Painting and the formal and medial constraints connected with a genre
whose appeal has lasted until Juan Gris, Georges Braque and Andre Derain.
Warriors
Warriorsseries.series.
Epic
Epicmemory's
memory's
purpose
purposeisistoto
block
blockthe thework
work
ofofforgetting.
forgetting.
Art
Artasassitesiteofof
memory,
memory,the the
visual fragment,
visual fragment,
the
thepithy
pithyfrozen
frozen
image
imageasasscene scene
maker,
maker,assistassistinin
rediscovering
rediscovering
the
thearticulation
articulation
ofofidentity
identity
across
across
discontinuity.
discontinuity.
As
AsPierre
PierreNora Nora
puts it,
puts it,
"memory
"memory
dictates
dictatesand and
history writes".
history writes".
The
TheWarriors
Warriors
series
series
demonstrates
demonstrates
the
thepossibilities
possibilities
ofofaa
contemporary
contemporary
history
history
painting.
painting.
Composition. The Polo Game.
Known as the game of kings, the game of polo was probably first played by horse mounted nomadic warriors in Central Asia and Persia.
Tamerlane's polo ground can still be seen in Samarkand. Based on initial studies created by means of photomontage and tearing away, the
work encourages chance association of disparate elements and their subsequent transformation through transmedialization or, to put it
differently, a nexus of supportive relations between formalization and play, and their chiastic reversal, the play of formalization.
 Space is organized around a decisive blank that beckons the viewer's imagination in the
construction of events. In the generalized, almost typological, rendering of the scene, the
warriors are only suggested.
 A Field Between Heaven and Earth
The paradox of the series is that one has chosen a subject deeply embedded in history precisely in order to overcome image
and the subject itself, giving a figurative style an oddly apocalyptic force by casting in the epicized mold the eschatological
battle myth, the old myth of destruction and regeneration, and by mixing veracity and allegory - a pagan theme is the maiden
dwelling in clouds which is the hero's assistant or otherwordly bride, and which may also be identified with Enyo [or horror],
a Greek goddess of war.
 As image of the
Hero, the
horseman was
canonized in art.
In Southeast
Europe the hero
horseman is a
mythical figure
and an
eschatological
symbol. Long-
lasting traditions
such as folk ritual
songs, carols, or
the festival of
Saint Theodore,
center mainly on
horses, the horse
being a solar
symbol. The
Tartu-Moscow
school of
semiotics argues
that a symbol
mediates between
different spheres
of semiosis, it is a
polylogue [that is
a communication
process involving
multiple
participants]
which acts as a
basic mechanism
in cultural
memory.
Myth.
Myth.
Deeper
Deepercategories,
categories,stylistic
stylisticones,
ones,relate
relatetotoman's
man'sexistence
existencewithin
withinthe
thehorizon
horizonofof
mystery. By means of the magical-mythical, that is, the magic-ritualistic
mystery. By means of the magical-mythical, that is, the magic-ritualistic
Ereignis
Ereignisthat
thatisisgestural,
gestural,artistic
artisticor
or musical,
musical,archaic
archaichumans
humanssucceeded
succeedednotnotonly
only
in
in exerting a certain objective control over natural and human reality but alsoin
exerting a certain objective control over natural and human reality but also in
building
buildingaasubjective
subjectivereality
realityable
abletotomentally
mentallyreplace
replacethethereal
realone:
one:the
thehuman
human
culture.
culture.
With
Withan anoperatic
operaticgrandeur,
grandeur,the
thelifelong
lifelongexperimentation
experimentationwith
withopen
openseries,
series,cycles
cycles
of related works, and meditative formal fantasia variations, which incorporate
of related works, and meditative formal fantasia variations, which incorporate
material
materialfreely
freelyand
anddisplay
displayananexceptional
exceptionalknowledge
knowledgeof ofdiverse
diversestyles,
styles,creates
createsaa
ceremonial,
ceremonial,deliberate
deliberateballet
balletof
ofimages
imagesandandclose-ups
close-upsand
andisiscommitted
committedtoto
unfolding
unfoldingintointoaavast
vastpainterly
painterlyresonance.
resonance.Complex
Complexsigns
signsare
aredefinitely
definitelypure
pure
painterliness
painterlinessenabling
enablingthe
therecursive
recursiveprocess
processof
ofrepresentation
representation - - signs
signsbecome
become
signs of signs.
signs of signs.
Probing the aesthetic ideology
of East-Central and South-
Eastern Europe, Mircea Eliade
describes a part pagan, part
Christian matrix. It is said that
after the building of Troy,
Apollo, called 'born of a she-
wolf', returned on the
Danube. It is in the Thracian
Carpatho-Danubian area that
the Other of Greece, Dionysos,
the dying and reborn God, and
Orpheus, the Night Master
whose song could charm the
beasts, are born. The myth
making mechanism is
organized as topological
space. Boyan Manchev
introduces the concept of the
Other Greece, the dark Greece
of mysteries, rituality and
sacrifices, of divination,
constant warfare and the hero
cult, the Greece of vivid red
and blue temples and of
polychromatic painted and
gilded statues, and of gods
rolling dice for the possession
of the Universe.It is the Greece
of Bellerophon, a former rider
of the winged horse Pegasus,
on which he tried to fly to
heaven after killing Chimaera,
but fell and wandered about
blind until his death, and of
Perseus, the dragon slayer
who later becomes the hero of
Southeast European folktales.
The bacchanal series recalls the violence of the ancient rites of Dionysos - a pre-indo-european god of great antiquity, the
god of annual renewal, a bull-god. Here mythology is lowered to the level of mortals and is also the pretext for an
exercise in skill by accumulating figures and details in a forest glade. Festinalia, feasting dances after the repast, have
been instituted by Dionysos and appear to be the origin of today's balls [late Latin ballare, greek ballizein, a large formal
gathering for social dancing].
 Perseus and Andromeda. The painting as aesthetic display is packed with references to other works - Roman murals,
Byzantine mosaics, Titian, Rubens - and with complex interwoven forms transcending subject matter, it is a hieroglyphic
or pictographic painting. Andromeda, meaning ruler of men, was said to be an Aethiopian, that is African, princess.
Ancient Aethiopians considered Perseus and Andromeda the progenitors of the black race.
 Moira's Tapestry. Moira, the sharer out, personification of fate and necessity, weaves the destiny of
humankind, which is subject to her uncaring whimsy. Or as it were, she throws a meshwork over the universe.
In Homer, she is older than the gods themselves.
 Orpheus' Descent into
Hades.
Orpheus descends into
Hades to have his bride,
Eurydice, back. The hero's
journey to the Underworld,
the story of loss, separation
and redemption, is part of a
journey of initiation.
Following Nietzsche,
aesthetic thought is usually
represented by Dionysos
and Apollo, but, according
to Viacheslav Ivanov, the
third stage is personified by
Orpheus. Czeslaw Milosz
writes:"It is possible that
there is no other memory
than the memory of
wounds." Czeslaw Milosz'
Orpheus descends into
Hades only to find, in the
end, the desolate isolation
he had sung to get rid of,
now even emptier than
before:

For his defense he had a

nine stringed lyre.
He carried in it the music of
the earth, against the abyss
That buries all of sound in
silence.

…It happened as he
expected. He turned his
head
And behind him on the
path was no one…
 The Meaning of Meaning
The fool or jester indicates the world as a tragic place. The carnivalesque masquerade of the harlequin and of the satyr playing a tambourine,
mixes the marvelous, the farcical, vulgarity, and seriousness, a reminder of the circus of life - 'circus' derives from circulus, a reference to the
orbit of the planets, which is linked to the sphere of the gods. The extravagant juxtaposition, the grotesque mixing, the figures on the stage of a
theatre of the absurd, the vestiges in modern time of art as festivalization, all of these reflect the Bakhtinian principle of 're-accentuation', the
contemporaneousness of the non-contemporary, the simultaneity of the non-simultaneous.
 The Judgement of Paris
The transmission of tradition across cultural interfaces and
their reconfiguration and reinterpretation within symbolic
systems serves, on the one hand, as a conduit for Western
artistic models, on the other hand, it indigenizes them
across a range of cultural locations. Above is the Fury. The
apple that Paris gave to Venus on Mount Ida may be
viewed as the mythological original sin, as it was the
beginning of the epic Trojan War, although Hercules had
also sacked Troy a generation before Agamemnon and
Ulysses. Ancient lore also tells that Zeus, like the Indian
Gods, had the intention of easing the problem of
overpopulation and thus facilitated the great war on the
periphery. By embracing the characteristics of and delving
into a mythical past, by juxtaposing old world formality
and modern narcissism, one recasts the archetypal story of
the Judgement of Paris and Troy in order to create an
answer to the problems of the present. The epic of Troy tells
that a culture can die. Archaeology shows that there were
many wars in and about the city. The fortified town was
located at the periphery of empires, that is to say between
the Hittite Empire and the Aegean city states ruled by
warlords, freebooters and pirates - the Odyssey
commemorates their raids. While Greece may be
paradoxically problematized as both the cradle and
periphery of Europe, Troy itself may be construed as a
metaphor of a borderland, of in-betweenness.

Since at least the Trojan War, which was actually fought to

dominate trade routes, the areas of South-Eastern Europe
have been a strategic crossroads. Is the Southeast European
chronotope predestined to cyclical destruction? A
multifaceted referentiality highlights the similarities
between the Trojan War, a tale from far gone times, and the
European collision of empires in the Carpatho-Danubian
and Balkan areas, emphasizing conflict as fundamental for
the human condition.

Maleable symbols act as attractors and allow the present to

be fed back into the original equation. In so doing, one
creates a visual duality between the past and the present
and contrasts Baroque compositional techniques with the
multiple non-discursive cinematic strategies of the
twentieth century, that is spatial discontinuity with bizarre
and distorted decor.
 The youth of Dionysos
The divine child Dionysos was
raised by the nymphs of Mount
Nysa,. He was tutored by Silenus,
often shown as a drunken satyr. It
should be noted that a remarkable
pattern of correspondence does
exist between Dionysus and Shiva,
the latter known as lord of the
dance and god of destruction and
regeneration. In the contemporary
enthusiasm for "creative
destruction" we are once again in
the domain of myth and of
mythical thinking. Whoever
wanders into the realm of
Dionysian intoxication, risks being
torn to pieces by his maenads.
 Bible Review, June 2004:
Arteni's Anastasis is “It may be, of course, that the essence
reproduced on the cover. holds a dual paradox: the autonomous
nature of this oriental iconolatry is fed on
its very anachronism; or at a different
level, it is also possible that with its
strictly guarded rules, canonised icon
painting, which originally negated
individuality, has survived all attacks by
alien ideals and...it suggests its own
timely essence: collective autonomy.”
(Istvan Hajdu)

The Byzantine theory of images is paradigmatic, it rests on a culturally specific approach to understanding through sight. Ritual
The Byzantine theory of images is paradigmatic, it rests on a culturally specific approach to understanding through sight. Ritual
emblematic or pictographic compositions imply forms of cognition under conditions of an oral-visual culture. The artistic schematics
emblematic or pictographic compositions imply forms of cognition under conditions of an oral-visual culture. The artistic schematics
always remain visible, introducing a dichotomy of schema and figure as well as a compression of form-space through perspective reversals.
always remain visible, introducing a dichotomy of schema and figure as well as a compression of form-space through perspective reversals.
"Eyesight is hierarchically higher than hearing", writes Maria Roginska. "The metaphor of eyes as...windows in the body - and vice versa,
"Eyesight is hierarchically higher than hearing", writes Maria Roginska. "The metaphor of eyes as...windows in the body - and vice versa,
the comparison of the windows to the eyes - refers to…a 'chink' in a boundary. In an Orthodox world's model a window retains its archaic
the comparison of the windows to the eyes - refers to…a 'chink' in a boundary. In an Orthodox world's model a window retains its archaic
symbolism of a 'passage' into a different reality". Icons are contextually located objects using a codified visual 'language'. An icon's
symbolism of a 'passage' into a different reality". Icons are contextually located objects using a codified visual 'language'. An icon's
placement in a relational context is meant to use contrast, parallelism and symbolism, simultaneity and leit-motif, and montage techniques
placement in a relational context is meant to use contrast, parallelism and symbolism, simultaneity and leit-motif, and montage techniques
as described by the early Russian film theorists - although montage seems to be unique to cinema, it is in fact likely that the local
as described by the early Russian film theorists - although montage seems to be unique to cinema, it is in fact likely that the local
Byzantine visual tradition shaped their cinematic practices.
Byzantine visual tradition shaped their cinematic practices.
The Byzantines actually called themselves Romans, Romaioi in Greek. A largely illiterate public could include exalted persons, such as
The Byzantines actually called themselves Romans, Romaioi in Greek. A largely illiterate public could include exalted persons, such as
Emperors, besides masses of rural and townsfolk. Artistic integration in an Orthodox Church building transforms it into a multi-media
Emperors, besides masses of rural and townsfolk. Artistic integration in an Orthodox Church building transforms it into a multi-media
ritual object, structuring the perceptual, sensory and conceptual experiences. The experiencing is many-sided, with olfactory, gustatory,
ritual object, structuring the perceptual, sensory and conceptual experiences. The experiencing is many-sided, with olfactory, gustatory,
and tactile contents, within an overall aural experience, while the vision is directed by the glitter and shimmering of lights reflected
and tactile contents, within an overall aural experience, while the vision is directed by the glitter and shimmering of lights reflected
from mosaics and altarpieces and the stylized performance.
from mosaics and altarpieces and the stylized performance.
 St. George's
iconography
encompasses
apparently the
mysterious
earlier 'Thracian
Horseman'. The
Thracian,
Danubian or
Dacian Rider
mystery cult
guaranteed
immortality. An
ancient lead
relief shows a
pair of horsemen
flanking a
female deity
whose attribute
is a fish. St.
George, the
equestrian saint,
is seen as the
bringer of
summer and
fertility.
What was it, what is it, what will it be -
What was it, what is it, what will it be -
we filled the world with our cry and calling.
we filled the world with our cry and calling.
The dawn is back, the red moon set,
The dawn is back, the red moon set,
do we know now?…(Czeslaw Milosz)
do we know now?…(Czeslaw Milosz)
The
Theall-pervasive
all-pervasiveprinciple
principleofofmutability
mutabilityofofforms
formsremains
remainsaaconstant
constantwithin
withinpictorial
pictorialinventions.
inventions.Perspective
Perspective
and the organization of marks and signs are formulated in qualitative-geometrical terms
and the organization of marks and signs are formulated in qualitative-geometrical terms
[Barry
[BarrySmith
Smithand
andBrandon
BrandonBennett].
Bennett].The Thegeometry
geometryisisnon-precise
non-precisebut butonlyonlyconstrained
constrainedby bythe
thequalitative
qualitative
topological
topologicaldata,
data,ititmay
maybe bedescribed
describedasasaamereogeometry
mereogeometrydealing
dealingwithwithqualitative
qualitativespatial
spatialrepresentation.
representation.
The
Thepaintings
paintingsdeemphasize
deemphasizethree-dimensionality
three-dimensionalityThe Thesubject
subjectitself
itselfisisindeterminate
indeterminateand andconfusing,
confusing,apparently
apparently
created
createdpurely
purelyasasan anartistic
artisticexercise,
exercise,valuing
valuingerudition
eruditionininall
allaspects
aspectsofofart.
art.The
Theplay
playwith
withperspectival
perspectivalgames
games
based on the Roman stage set, that is to say scaenographia conceived as perspective,
based on the Roman stage set, that is to say scaenographia conceived as perspective,
the
thepurposeful
purposefulspatial
spatialcomplexity
complexityand andaahorror
horrorvacui
vacui(fear
(fearofofvacuum)
vacuum)suggested
suggestedby bythe
thetightly
tightlycompressed
compressed
figures
figuresunderscored
underscoredby byaapalette
paletteconsisting
consistingofoffragile
fragilehues,
hues,convey
conveyaasensesenseofofstylistic
stylistictension.
tension.Figural
Figural
vignettes intersect surfaces where expressive abstraction challenges the viewer to focus where he/she
vignettes intersect surfaces where expressive abstraction challenges the viewer to focus where he/she
ordinarily
ordinarilymight
mightnot.not.The
Thepolyphony
polyphonyisisorganically
organicallyembodied
embodiedininthe thechromatic
chromaticstrategies
strategiesworking
working
ininthe whole thickness of the layers. Palimpsestic superimpositions are intertwined with cesia,
the whole thickness of the layers. Palimpsestic superimpositions are intertwined with cesia,
ororvisual
visualsensations
sensationsdue duetotodifferences
differencesininpaint
paintapplication
applicationeffects,
effects,andandturn
turnany
anypossible
possibleform
form
into
intothe
themedium
mediumofofaapossible
possibledifferent
differentform.
form.

Bible Review, February 2005:

Arteni's Conversion of Saul is reproduced
on the Gallery page.
 Within the Sectio
Aurea surface
organization, the
contingent image
structure is
constructed as a
formal play of
interpretative
stylistic citations:
transpositions of
Baroque drawings
(putti and
shepherd), Flemish
Primitives (child
and animals), and
Medieval
Miniatures (Magi).
The color
composition is
based on a major
orange-blue gamut,
and the minors
red-green (with a
light-green
dissonance in the
Magi) and yellow-
violet (with a light-
yellow dissonance
in the star).
Abstract.
Abstract.
Representational
Representational
variability
variabilityshows
shows
that
that shiftingback
shifting back
and forth between
and forth between
figural
figuraland
and
abstract
abstractwill
willallow
allow
for multiple
for multiple
stylistic
stylisticvariations.
variations.
Landscapes. Along
Landscapes. Along
a diachronic axis,
a diachronic axis,
the polyvalence of
the polyvalence of
Western visual
Western visual
literacy is
literacy is
embodied in the
embodied in the
structure of the
structure of the
compositional
compositional
landscape and its
landscape and its
topographical
topographical
indeterminacy -
indeterminacy -
Cezanne's advice
Cezanne's advice
favors the active
favors the active
compositions of
compositions of
the masters. The
the masters. The
second axis
second axis
concerns a mode
concerns a mode
of organization
of organization
proper to Persian
proper to Persian
painting. It
painting. It
depends upon
depends upon
qualities internal
qualities internal
to the painting
to the painting
irrespective of its
irrespective of its
scale, a staging of
scale, a staging of
landscape
landscape
expounded by
expounded by
Andre Lhote, the
Andre Lhote, the
binding of imagic
binding of imagic
constructs to the
constructs to the
contrapuntal
contrapuntal
demands of the
demands of the
composition.
composition.
Legends.
Legends.Figural
Figural
emblems, ductility
emblems, ductility
ofofbrush
brushand
and
palette knife
palette knife
working
workingon onthethe
geometry
geometrywhichwhich
structures
structuresmatter,
matter,
and
andaapalimpsestic
palimpsestic
compilation
compilationand and
proliferation of
proliferation of
traces reveal how
traces reveal how
fragmented
fragmented
cultural
culturalmemory
memory
has embedded
has embedded
itself
itselfinto
intothe
theform
form
via color as the
via color as the
medium
mediumofoflight.
light.
The
Thedouble
double
function
functionofoffine
fine
painting
paintingisisalways
always
apparent:
apparent:eacheach
form,
form, each areaofof
each area
paint
paintisisboth
bothitself
itself, ,
aapresemiotic
presemiotic
unmediated
unmediated
materiality,
materiality,and,and,atat
the
thesame
sameinstant,
instant, Hunting scenes derive in great part from mythological representations The hero-founder accompanied by his
the
thepotential
potential hound recalls the Thracian horseman. The hero, the auroch hunter of legend, the founder of Moldavia, has a
communication
communicationofof
cultural-mediator function as he personifies sacred kingship including its role of intermediary between gods and
illusion. people. Hunting was perceived as a rite through which kingship asserts authority over the countryside and even
illusion. mastery over nature and obtains a condition of liminality between the sacred and the profane - the latin sacer,
translated as sacred, also signifies sacrifice. Sacrifice should be understood not only as ritual or exchange, but in all
its foundational complexity - a reflexive activity which gives rise to creation itself.
 Processual aesthetics recognizes the materially embodied dimensions of form as a sort of
Heideggerian Verwindung [the lexical meaning is: twisting, twisted surmounting]. In art there is
never a mere sequence, but in each case a polychronicity, a passing-by and simultaneity of the
early and the late. Form is ceaselessly emptied. and thus offers the possibility of retrieval and
transposition. Compositional constrained randomness and morpho-chromatic structure recall
the formal repertoire of folk rugs, the painting being a visual remembrance of a pastoral folk
ballad whose deep streak of fatalism describes death as a cosmic wedding.
MIOR ITA
Translation: W. D. Snodgrass
Near a low foothill
At Heaven's doorsill,
Where the trail's descending
To the plain and ending,
Here three shepherds keep
Their three flocks of sheep,
One, Moldavian,
One, Ungurean,
And one, Vrancean.
Now, the Vrancean
And Ungurean
In their thoughts, conniving,
Have laid plans, contriving
At the close of day
To ambush and slay
The Moldavian;
He, the wealthier one,
Had more flocks to keep,
Handsome, long-horned sheep,
Horses, trained and sound,
And the fiercest hounds.
One small ewe-lamb, though,
Dappled gray as tow,
While three full days passed
Bleated loud and fast,
Would not touch the grass.
"Ewe-lamb, dapple-gray,
Muzzled black and gray,
While three full days passed
You bleat loud and fast;
Don't you like this grass?
Are you too sick to eat,
Little lamb so sweet?"
"Oh my master dear,
Drive the flock out near
That field, dark to view,
Where the grass grows new,
Where there's shade for you.
Master, master dear,
Call a large hound near,
A fierce one and fearless,
Strong, loyal and peerless.
The Ungurean
And the Vrancean
When the daylight's through
Mean to murder you."
"Lamb, my little ewe,
If this omen's true,
If I'm doomed to death
On this tract of heath,
Tell the Vrancean
And Ungurean
To let my bones lie
Somewhere here close by,
By the sheepfold here
So my flocks are near,
Back of my hut's grounds
So I'll hear my hounds.
Tell them what I say:
There, beside me lay
One small pipe of beech
With its soft, sweet speech,
One small pipe of bone
With its loving tone,
One of elder wood,
Fiery-tongued and good.
Then the winds that blow
Would play on them so
All my listening sheep
Would draw near and weep
Tears, no blood so deep.
How I met my death,
Tell them not a breath;
Say I could not tarry,
I have gone to marry
A princess - my bride
Is the whole world's pride.
At my wedding, tell
How a bright star fell,
Sun and moon came down
To hold my bridal crown,
Firs and maple trees
Were my guests; my priests
Were the mountains high;
Fiddlers, birds that fly,
All birds of the sky;
Torchlights, stars on high.
But if you see there,
Should you meet somewhere,
My old mother, little,
With her white wool girdle,
Eyes with their tears flowing,
Over the plains going,
Asking one and all,
Saying to them all,
'Who has ever known,
Who has seen my own
Shepherd fine to see,
Slim as a willow tree,
With his dear face, bright
As the milk-foam, white,
His small moustache, right
As the young wheat's ear,
With his hair so dear,
Like plumes of the crow,
Little eyes that glow
Like the ripe, black sloe?'
Ewe-lamb, small and pretty,
For her sake have pity,
Let it just be said
I have gone to wed
A princess most noble
There on Heaven's doorsill.
To that mother, old,
Let it not be told
That a star fell, bright,
For my bridal night;
Firs and maple trees
Were my guests; my priests
Were the mountains high;
Fiddlers, birds that fly,
All birds of the sky;
Torchlights, stars on high."
 Calligraphy oil.
Calligraphy oil.
Signs are reduced to
Signs are reduced to
basic components of
basic components of
glyph structures and
glyph structures and
split glyphs, keeping
split glyphs, keeping
in mind that glyphs
in mind that glyphs
for the same
for the same
character may have
character may have
different shapes. In
different shapes. In
the game of
the game of
transmedialization
transmedialization
the calligraphic sign
the calligraphic sign
is transferred to the
is transferred to the
medium of
medium of
monotype or oil
monotype or oil
painting, where
painting, where
operational
operational
alterations may
alterations may
generate new
generate new
surface structures,
surface structures,
that is
that is
condensations and
condensations and
discontinuous
discontinuous
assemblages of the
assemblages of the
underlying glyph
underlying glyph
topology, offsetting
topology, offsetting
any one mode of
any one mode of
appearing, in order
appearing, in order
to coordinate a
to coordinate a
plurality of
plurality of
appearances.
appearances.