Metamorphosis

Metamorphosis:

Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in its body structure through cell growth and differentiation. Some insects, fish, amphibians, mollusks and crustaceans undergo metamorphosis, which is often accompanied by a change of nutrition source or/ and behavior.

In short, metamorphosis is the phenomenon of the caterpillar turning into the butterfly.

The caterpillar is an eating machine and as such does very well, its behavior is that of an eating machine: stay where there is food and eat it. A butterfly behaves quite differently, instead of staying in one very limited area and doing nothing but eat the butterfly moves in a far greater space and is on the lookout for potentially good new feeding ground and sex partners. 

We humans are one of the most changeable creatures on earth, it could be said that we undergo metamorphosis many times in our life, not so much a physical but a mental one. 

The butterfly does not remember its life as a caterpillar and therefore does not regret it. We, on the other hand, who remember our past, our former lives, we who undergo metamorphosis in behavior, character, lifestyle, we often feel regret at the thought of a phase in our lives irretrievably lost. 

We desire change and aim to change, at the same time we are deeply afraid of change, maybe this is a very human trait and the motor for most of our endeavors in science and art. 

#robertfaeth, #painterinBerlin, #painting, #art, #bookblog, #bookreviews, #literaturelover, #poem, #poetry

Ethics vs. Aesthetics

Ethics vs. Aesthetics:

In light of the vehemence of rejection which met the publication of Woody Allen’s latest biography the question arises (once more and hopefully not for the last time) how to handle the fact that art is never made by good people only. 

What follows if one allows ethics to undermine aesthetics? It would mean that only art of morally impeccability of morally impeccable artists in morally impeccable institutes would be allowed to be seen, heard or read - this would be the end of art, such art, stripped of its core, would be worthless.

Artists are human beings, as prone to ethical and moral snares as everyone else. A number of artists come to mind whose personal conduct and believes are hard to reconcile with the admiration and inspiration their art generates.

Woody Allen’s personal conduct, for example, might not have been that of a saint and I am sure there have been situations in his life, as in everyone else’s, in which he made dubious decisions. This should not affect our reception of his art. I personally like most of his movies, their fascination with the absurdities of life.

Emil Nolde, the German expressionist painter, was an antisemite and nationalist. And yet his art deeply moves me on more than one level. Pablo Picasso would not have survived the #MeToo movement, he would have been considered a swine. Richard Wagner, not really one of my favorites, but undoubtedly a good composer, also was an antisemite. And the list could continue, with Klaus Kinski, James Brown, Miles Davis, Michael Jackson… Art is being made by assholes, too. This is the sorry truth we have to recognize.

We also have to recognize that there is no Black/ White, no absolutes, no overall valid morale. It is always dangerous to rely on morale only. Where moralization rules, sanity and reason tend to go down the drain. Morale is the continuance of religion with different means, a very subjective endeavor. As long as we continue to think morally (simplistic) we divide the world in friend and foe, in good and bad, in rules and interdictions.

Should we allow ourselves to be fascinated, moved, inspired and touched by art who’s creator does not meet our moral approval? The answer to that dilemma might lie in a space beyond morale. Maybe it is more about the question which contradictions we should learn to endure. Not all of them are solvable, some of them we just have to learn to live with and thus continue living the absurdity of life.

#robertfaeth, #painterinBerlin, #painting, #art, #bookblog, #bookreviews, #literaturelover, #poem, #poetry

Youth - And Why We Shouldn’t Shed Tears When It Is Gone

Youth - And Why We Shouldn’t Shed Tears When It Is Gone:

Undoubtedly our youth is one of the most important and well remembered phases in our life, the one which led from what we were then to what we are now. Youth is the seed out of which our life developed, it is a life forming agent.

But, once over, it is not really a thing to shed sirupy tears over because one has “lost“ it.  

Yes it is true, there are things which a younger body is more capable of doing, and the joy of feeling my body in extremis is still something I dearly remember, as I do remember the thrill, the euphoria and ecstasy of first-time experiences. I have lost the ability to run as fast and arduously as I used to or jump over fences, swim across wide rivers or dance through endless nights. My skin developed cracks and crinkles, the smoothness, the good looks, the capability to please, seduce and win over just with these alone - all gone. Those days are over.

.

Most of what people say they miss when asked about their youth are physical attributes. Admittedly, loosing these is a somewhat unpleasant experience. Beauty is something I still very much cherish and youth and beauty seem to go together. But life has taught me that all, and I mean: all, is ending. So, loosing my youthful beauty falls into the same category as the sad regret I feel when I drop a cherished vase. I do feel sorry for the loss, grieve a while for the irrevocability of beauty now destroyed and gone, but I am grateful, too for the time I have been allowed to enjoy and revel in it. 

What many don’t realize, though, is this enormous gain in other fields, mainly those of the mind, the soul, the over-all sense of being.

Gone are the days of insecurities and fears, of constantly felt anxieties, of that permanent pressure to please and fit in, this nagging need to live up to the (real or imagined) expectations of fellow co-beings or the world.

Gone are also the days of not really knowing what I am, where I belong to, what purpose or sense this life of me serves.

One of the great advantages of being older, if all goes moderately well, is the knowledge one picks up on the way, knowledge which helps to meet new situations less fearful, less surprised, less overwhelmed. At a certain age one has lived through almost every aspect of human life and experienced all manners of situations: kids were born, parents died, friends parted, relationships ended, former life-partners are no longer part of one’s life, one lived through illness, has had luck and has had bad luck. Very few remains menacing theory, reality has lost its terrifying power, one has learned to cope with it.

Dealing with everyday life became more relaxed and lead to (do I have to spell it out) a quieter, more content existence. I can act now instead of freeze in shock and fear. An invigorating achievement not to be underestimated. 

Somewhere I read (I think it was Iris Murdoch) that human beings are “finders of substitutes“. In regard to my life I find that knowledge, experience, ease, calm and content are a good substitute for the desperate struggles of youth.

#robertfaeth, #painterinBerlin, #painting, #art, #bookblog, #bookreviews, #literaturelover, #poem, #poetry

“A Fairly Honourable Defeat” by Iris Murdoch - review

“A Fairly Honourable Defeat” by Iris Murdoch:

In her thirteenth novel, published 1970, Iris Murdoch depicts a social network of which the nucleus is the seemingly intact and harmonious marriage of Hilda and Rupert Foster who live a quiet, content, fairly comfortable life in one of the better-off suburbs of London. 

Into this world comes Julius King, rich, handsome, clever, seductive, deceitful and diabolic. He machinates his victims (and there are not a few) by silently and cunningly isolating them and therefore making it impossible for them to talk to each other. He uses them as puppets in a play, employs their fears, their jealousies and insecurities to his advantage, uses flattery and critique and thus creates a tormenting atmosphere for his victims who, a muddling philosopher, a shy youth, a straying woman, an aging housewife, a gay couple, all succumb with tragic results to his machinations and loose their until then harmonious environment. 

This alone would make a great story but it is with great humor, wit and brilliant dialogue that Murdoch elevates the story into regions of divine comedy. The book vibrates with verbal energy, intense, funny, comical, tragic. With Murdoch, a keen observer of the human mind, it is always about the mechanisms of relationships, the inner workings, the why we act the way we act.

The extremely humane and honest representation of the gay couple especially, in which Murdoch explores deeply and without prejudice what it is that makes a marriage a marriage, is remarkably well done. One should not forget that this was 1970, just three years after the decriminalization of private homosexual acts in the UK. Even today, fifty years later, it remains a very beautiful piece of literary representation of a same-sex marriage.

This novel is a gem in philosophical and psychological insights and testifies of a grand understanding of the human mind. And yet this tale is not a dark one only, it shines and shivers with silent, repressed laughter.

As in a Shakespearean comedy, not all is lost in the end, there still remains hope, some order was destroyed but some important lessons were learned and the future seems far more full of hope than hopeless. 

**Dame Jean Iris Murdoch (15 July 1919 – 8 February 1999) was an Irish and British novelist and philosopher. Murdoch is best known for her novels about good and evil, sexual relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious. 

#robertfaeth, #painterinBerlin, #painting, #art, #bookblog, #bookreviews, #literaturelover, #poem, #poetry

Another Recipe for Yet Another Dreary Day

After my success with the red wine cake (see previous blog entry) I went on a search for another mind soother and found this recipe: Cookie bars with bacon and dark beer, white and brown sugar, caramel, peanut butter, chocolate chips, potato chips and salt pretzels.

Amazing, how a little tastebud stimulation can jolly up your day! :)

I found it on ”baketotheroots.de” - Here is the link:

https://baketotheroots.de/cookie-bars-mit-bacon-und-schwarzbier/

Thank you, Marc!!! :)



Ingredients:
For the dough:
3/4 cup (170g) butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
1/2 cup (100g) sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups (260g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3 tbsp. dark beer (e.g. Guinness Stout)
2 slices of fried bacon, chopped
3/4 cup (100g) chocolate chips


For the topping:
8.5 oz. (240g) caramels
1/4 cup (60ml) dark beer (e.g. Guinness Stout)
1 tbsp. peanut butter
3/4 cup (35g) salted potato chips
1/4 cup (20g) pretzels
2-3 slices of fried bacon, chopped
1/2 cup (60g) chocolate chips
melted chocolate to drizzle

Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F (175°C). Line a 9×9 inch (23x23cm) square baking pan with baking parchment and set aside. Fry the bacon for the batter and topping and let drain on a paper towel.

2. In a large bowl mix the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Mix the flour with baking soda and add together with the beer to the bowl – mix until well combined. Add the chopped bacon and chocolate chips and fold in. Transfer to the baking pan. The dough is quite thick, so you have to press it into the form and the edges. Smooth out the top and bake for 24-26 minutes – the edges should have a bit of a golden color. Take out of the oven and let cool down completely in the pan.

3. Add the caramels and beer to a small sauce pan and heat up until the caramels are melted – don’t go to high with the temperature, or the caramel will burn. Let bubble over low heat for about 5-8 minutes – you need a thick mixture but it should be still a bit liquid, so don’t overcook it ;)

4. Cut the fried bacon into small pices, crush the potato chips and salted pretzels a bit, so you have (not too) small pieces. Mix with the bacon and chocolate chips and set aside.

5. When the cookie is cooled, spread the beer caramel evenly on top. Spread the peanut butter on top of that (works best with a small spatula or the back of a spoon) and sprinkle with the potato chips-pretzel-bacon-chocolate-chip mixture. Press a bit into the caramel and let cool down.

6. Take the big cookie out of the pan and cut into bars. 

.

A Recipe for A Dreary Day

These last days have been very, very dreary and grey. Typical Berlin after holidays: Cold, wet, grey, not very nice. And, I have to admit, it affects one's mood. Whilst browsing through old notes I found an old recipe, sleeping there for at least 20 years, from my grandmother (not a cliché, she existed, her name was Johanna).  It is a recipe for a Rotweinkuchen, a red wine cake. Delicious! And easy to do! I immediately set to baking it and the result improved my mood for the next 3 days, not to mention my waistline.

Here is the recipe for the Rotweinkuchen:

Ingredients:
For the cake:
250g butter, room temperature
250g sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4 medium eggs
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tbsp. cocoa powder
125ml dry red wine
250g all-purpose flour (Typ 405)
1/2 tsp. baking powder (Backin)
1/2 tsp. baking soda (Natron)
1/2 tsp. of salt
100g semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

For the glaze:
150g semi-sweet chocolate glaze
1 tbsp. coconut oil


Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 190 °C. Line a baking form (preferably a Marmorkuchen or Gugelhupf form) with baking parchment or grease and dust with finely ground breadcrumb (Semmelbrösel). Set aside.


2. Put butter, sugar and vanilla extract in a large bowl and mix until fluffy and light. Add the eggs one after another and mix in well. Mix the flour with baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and cocoa. Then slowly mix in the red wine until well combined. Fold in the chopped chocolate (keep about 2 tablespoons for the decoration). Pour the batter into the prepared baking form, smooth out the top and bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Take out of the oven and let cool down and then remove carefully from the form and let cool down completely on a wire rack.


3. Chop the chocolate for the glaze and put into a heatproof bowl together with the coconut oil, place on a pot with simmering water and melt. Mix until well combined. Take off the heat, let it cool down a bit and then pour over the cake, sprinkle with the remaining chopped chocolate.