A visit to old leather factory in Oisterwijk (NL) May 8, 2014, combined with a view of paintings by WOLS in Museo Sofia Reina in the same year, Madrid (E) made me create assemblage.
With group of 12 photographers, we were allowed to search for good places to photograph.
One way out
“So, there is only one way out. // But there are no stairs. // There is no rope, no trampoline. // You have no wings even. // Knowing that the heat will become intolerable / how do you get out?!”
Not to be seated
“Here one stands in awe / and one’s mind lingers / about those, who once were sitting on the benches. // But after what happened / the holiness of this sacred site / does not allow anyone to be seated here / anymore.”
“Three trestles under the hatch: Even, / if the memory / of an empty room / with stone trestles, that once
all photos, texts & art (c) Drager Meurtant, 2014 – 2024
Today, the world looked safer / without sirens, no shooting till 14 hours / and the car moved smoothly
accross the border / separating two countries for long / only in war having been united by force.
One hour later, the friends did meet / first time in almost 4 months.
It took two hours to talk down / the big C that shaped lives / and for leaving the extra coat / worn for safety.
And then they took a dive where it was / forbidden / followed by coffee on / a terrace looking at the river Rhine.
(terras aan de rivier de Rijn)
Vandaag kwam de wereld veiliger over / zonder sirenes, geen schieten tot 14 uur / en de auto bewoog langzaam / langs de grens / die de twee landen lang had gescheiden / alleen verenigd in de oorlog / door macht.
Eén uur later, ontmoetten de vrienden / elkaar voor het eerst in bijna vier maanden. / Het nam twee uur om de grote C / omlaag te praten, die het leven beheerste / en om de extra jas – gedragen voor de veiligheid – achter te laten.
En toen doken ze in het water waar het verboden was / gevolgd door koffie op / een terras dat uitkeek op de rivier de Rijn.
Drager Meurtant, June 24, 2020 (during lift of first Covid19 lockdown, minor corrections Jan 29, 2024)
When stones dance and move along the rythm of the surges of flowing times // and take a leave from the geometry imposed by builders seeking comfort and utility // and trees push out residing memories or on some occasion take place side by side // then eyes may wander in slow pace, step by step.
Wanneer stenen dansen en bewegen op het ritme van de golven van de tijdstroom en verlof nemen van de geometrie, opgelegd door bouwers die comfort en nuttig gebruik zochten // en bomen er de gezetelde herinneringen wegduwen; bij gelegenheid naast elkaar plaats nemen // dan kunnen ogen hier zwerven in langzaam bewegen, stap voor stap.
(Drager Meurtant, analog photo in The Provence, early 1980s, text 2017)
“We gaan op weg, ja, maar overal botsen we op grenzen: Grenzen die anderen stellen: fysiek, met douanecontrole, hoge hekken of soms zelfs met landmijnen. Of we botsen op limieten in normen en moraal. En, vroeger of later stuiten we op grenzen die ons lijf of geest tegenkomt”
Tentoonstelling in Kunstruimte De Melkfabriek, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, 27 mei tm 18 juni, 2023
Drager Meurtant – Staande voor het hek, lino-snede, 2018
Achttien kunstenaars uit acht landen laten hun visie zien in beeld of woord. In bijgaand boek tevens vijf essays van Richard Candidá Smith, Zhinia Noorian, David Estrada, George Kabel en Drager Meurtant, en achtergrondinformatie over over achtergrond en motief van de kunstenaars en beeldmateriaal.
Deelnemende kunstenaars
Initiatief van kunstenaars Drager Meurtant (NL), Jeanine Keuchenius (NL) en Petra Senn (D)
Verder nemen deel:
Katherine Chang-Liu (USA), Brian Dickerson (USA), Nina Fraser (Portugal), Joris van Gennip (NL), Carlo Grassini & Bill Thomas (USA), Sylvia Hubers (NL), Michal Iwanoski (Poland / UK), George Kabel (NL), Max King Cap (USA), Anna-Maria Komorowska (D), Oliver Merce (RO), Dorothee Mesander (GR), Ruth Philo (UK), Martien Vogelesang (NL).
The Milkfactory / De Melkfabriek, Guldenvliesstraat4H, 5211 AM, ‘s Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands
Brian Dickerson: ‘Vroman’ is een drie-dimensionaal ‘constructed painting’ dat aansluit bij het thema ‘Grenzen en Begrenzingen’ door het loslaten van vaste, fysieke posities
Preview (op uitnodiging) op 26 mei vanaf 15 uur
Formele opening 27 mei 14 – 17 uur
Openingstijden: Za 27/5, Zo 28/5, Ma 29/5, Za 3/6, Zo 4/6, Za 10/6, Zo 11/6, Za 17/6, Zo 18/6
From early youth, with walks in province of Limburg (NL) I was attracted by half timbered houses.
The architecture consists of a construction with partitions shaped by wooden beams, often made of oak, with in the partitions twigs with loam, later bricks.
Van mijn vroege jeugd, met wandeling in Limburg (NL) was ik aangetrokken door vakwerkhuizen.
De bouwstijl bestaat uit een constructie met vakken gevormd door ruwe, veelal wat gekromde balken, vaak van eiken, met in de vakken vroeger takken met leem, later baksteen.
Nu kunst tot m’n dagelijks leven behoort, is er vorm gegeven aan collage – relief van een vakwerkhuis.
In current time, with art being part of every day’s life, a half timbered hhouse was created with collage-relief.
This year, also wood cut was used to create an image of a hamlock with half timbered homes in the mountains.
As indicated in previous post (December 11, 2021), my journey in Greece from Dimitsana onward continued as hike mostly on feet, with myself as only company. An imprecise map helped me define Adritsaina as next ‘goal’, and I had the sun, time and a compass as lead. The Arcadian hills grown with small greek oak trees were hot and dry. The day passed without meeting any bipeds, and only a greek turtle crossed my path.
After mid-day, I had to take care not to get over-heated, but some rivers provided refreshment at times.
In hammock of Bardaki (Μπαρδάκι) I was invited – when filling water bottle at local pump – to have retsina and tomato salad in plenty olive oil on the veranda. The hospitable folks advised a cool moment at nearby river Alfeios.
After passing through Andritsaina, and after following a small path through the hills, I came close to a temple with just a few visitors. Some supportive structures had been raised, as an early step towards conservation. It is now an Unesco Monument, and restoration would start in 2001, with a tent (hood) placed over the temple remains. This Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae of Phigaleia has been raised in 5th century BC. In retrospect, the photo is unique with respict to point-of-view.
At the end of the next day I came to a place, where several big rectangular boulder stones had been neatly arranged providing a plateau to camp. I had arrived at the ancient site of Lycosura (Λυκόσουρα) with the temple of Despoina. At the nearby village an elderly lady had the key to small historic museum, with some big antique statues, and a lot of dust. The entree did cost two drachmes.
From there the trip continued on feet or by hitch hiking or bus, via Megalopolis to historic Argos, Mycene and coastal city of Nafplion. On the quay outside this city, several young people camped and took a swim in the sea, not bothering to put on cloths between dives. Several times during the day, a ripple of unrest traveled along this quay, when a police officer came to tell nudity would be punished.
From Nafplion, a regular buss service brought tourists to ancient Mycene.
From Nafplion an easy walk along busy motorway brought me to ancient Argos, with its huge amphiteatre.
Ancient Argos amphitheatre
In the city of Argos, a funeral service was hindered by the defect of historic funeral coach.
Small garages are scattered all over Greece, like here near Nafplion.
By ferry a short visit was brought to Spetse, the island where the book “The Magus” by author John Fowles is situated. By taking some distance to the tourist crowds, – talking about 1978 – at almost all places something of rural Greece could be found. I walked a few miles from the port, and near the lighthouse I got permission from the guard to camp with my little tent, after having accepted the offer of a glass of ouzo and some fresh tomatoes.
From Spetse another ferry brought me to Pireas and a bus to Athens, and that is where this story ends.
In July 1978 Jaap, a study pal and mountain hike companion, and I made a journey in Greece. We had trekked in several mountain regions since a few years. After arrival in Igoumenitsa by ferry from Brindisi (Italy), we hitchhiked south to Amfilochia in the back of an open truck.
The next day brought us to Patras, a city with a history of thousands of years. Already inhabited in prehistoric times, it was an important centre in the Mycenean era. After one night camp there, we continued east to small coastal village of Diakofto.
From Diakofto runs the “Odontotos Rack-railway” to Kalavrita. It was built between 1885-1895 and climbs steeply along a distance of 22 km. We followed a path besides and sometimes on the track, that rises in narrow cleft between steep rocks. At times a viper fled from being trapped on.
Ano Lousi lies on plateau at 1100 m altitude. From here we followed the road to Kata lousi with about as many cars or trucks passing as flocks of sheep.
Near the evening we arrived by foot in the small village of Kastria. We explained our whereabouts, to what appeared to be the village elder, and soon were invited to have a glass of ouzo with several most older men at a table. Later, we were invited to join a party planned to visit the cave that had been discovered nearby, a few years earlier, by a shepherd who had lost a sheep. The party would take ‘William’, a former villager who had emigrated to the USA twenty years earlier, and who had just returned for a visit, to the site, and us alongside.
No ticket counter of parking for busses, yet to be seen. We were able to enter the cave for about 300 m, with the guide using an old mining-lamp (Davy lamp) and then were stopped by lakes. Nowadays, walking bridges have been created to gain acces much deeper.
We hiked further to Klitoria and then to Dafni. On the outskirts of the small village of Dafni, there were more than ten threshing circles. These may have been created two thousand years ago… and are located in areas where the wind blows.
From Dafni the path led to Langadia, on the busy and touristic road from Olympia to Tripoli. A steep climb to a street 100 m higher brought us back in more rural village atmosphere and we were offered small flat grass plateau for the tent.
From Langadia we walked to Dimitsana, about 10 km south. This mountain village at 1000 m height, played important role in Greep revolt against the Turkish occupants. To our great surprise, a Dutch couple arrived soon after we installed our camp outside this village. The surprise became even bigger when they turned out to be neighbours of Jaap. No previous talk about respective travels had been made. The encounter was a pure coincidence…
The next day, our path did split, with – Jaap heading for Athens to meet family, and I continued my path alone. This will be part of 2nd blog.