Ages of Consolation 1

'Ages of Conslotation' Show, Raamgalerij Vitrine, Brugge 2007.

It all started with a painting of René Thys, a friend 's deceased granddad. It shows a woman and child sitting at a table. There is a letter on the table. The child 's arm is around the woman 's shoulder. The woman holds the hand of the child. They are in distress, comforting eachother for some reason. They feel a very personal sorrow with a concrete reason. Though the painting is abstract it shows a familiar situation, so it reflects a universal feeling. That made me thinking about the significance of comfort to mankind in our civilised societies while making observations of cultural environments and behaviour. So I could transpose the consolation shown in the painting into answers to existential pain, looking behind the edges of men 's existence. It seems that this big stream of cultural consolation includes another tragedy. At least raises questions about their significance. Is it about making dreams ? Looking at them they seem to have a surrealist undertone.