Text spoken by Ad van der Helm at the opening of the Opara exhibition at the Pulchri Studio in 2018
t is an extraordinary experience to contemplate the works of Vladimir Opara. I have been looking into his catalogue for some weeks and thought about the themes that he delivers us. These are religious themes. Not self-evident for an art gallery in a modern city like The Hague. For Vladimir heaven signifies a presence. It is for him a way of looking at the life of mankind. I also read his notes for this exhibition ‘Heavens’. Heaven is about mankind. Also about the catastrophes that might occur. Reflecting about heavens doesn’t mean to look away or deny these catastrophes. But looking at heavens gives consolation and offers the reason not to lose trust in mankind.
I want to share with you this afternoon the ideas and feelings that come up with me by the words and images of Vladimir. I want to share with you how I want to climb the ladder myself. Not in order to tell you how you have to do this yourself, but as an invitation to discover your own ladder and take hold of it.
What fascinates me in the words that Vladimir offers today, is living in the time of the eighth day. For us as Christians this eighth day returns every week when we celebrate Sunday. Sunday is the eighth day that follows the seventh day, the Sabbath. Sabbath is the restday of the Lord by with creation is completed. The Sunday after this restday is not the first day of the week, but it means the beginning of another life. The Sunday has therefor another, symbolic meaning. It is not about whether or not commercial Sundays are permitted; I don’t mind so much. For me it is not an issue anymore. I can do without them. But whoever gives him/herself the opportunity for a day different from the others, whoever makes room for the eighth day in his/her life, has started to climb up the ladder. He/she wants to rise above the ground level of our flat country. Our country is extremely flat. Vladimir is very impressed by the flatness of our country, and he also tells about the catastrophes that have occurred in the floods of 1953 and 1916. I am more negative on the flatness of the Netherlands: we can make our country so flat that there is no place to put our ladder.
Where else can a ladder find support than in heaven? Heaven is our focus for the other reality that surrounds us, like the oxygen that we breathe without seeing it. Heaven is like the huge firmament that opens up our regards to new distances and perspectives that we otherwise would ignore. I do not talk about looking up, because it is a misunderstanding that heaven is above us. Heaven is not a place, but an invitation to choose another perspective to contemplate our reality.
There is also another ladder that invites us and that you can find in the work of Vladimir Opara. That is the cross. Probably you are not used to see the parallel between a ladder and a cross. Yet the cross is also a ladder put against heaven. May be you will say: the cross is not a ladder, it is the end of life? Indeed it is a torture instrument used by the Romans for their slaves. The first Christians hesitated some centuries before they dared to show the cross as their symbol and sign of recognition. The apostle Paul struggles also with the meaning of the cross. It reveals itself not as an end, but as a passage. The cross is the ultimate paradox because with this instrument of torture love becomes visible. The ladder elevates us above our reality and gives another perspective on our own human life. On the cross, the climax of the life of Jesus Christ, it becomes clear to what love a person is capable of, even if life is made impossible and taken away. “Forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing” or “mother, see, there is your son; son see there is your mother” and other mysterious words and gestures make clear that on the cross life is not taken away, but life is given.
This is living on the eighth day. This is living in a world that is not flat. That is living in a world not threatened by a lack of vision about beauty. That is living in a world not lacking of a vision on real life. This is loving in a world not threatened by a lack of vision on what is lasting happiness. Of course there are catastrophes that menace the world and mankind. And people are angry with heaven: why this is done to us? But not heaven is to blame. Heaven is benevolent, and invites us to climb the ladder instead of lying down and remaining asleep like a depressive Jacob. We’d better get up and rise.
Vladimir Opara offers much more to reflect upon and to let feelings come up. It is up to us to understand what this means to ourselves and what ladder we want to climb. Lying down is no option. I hope that you discover by this exhibition what height, width and depth surround us en that in this universe the reality of life of the eighth day is opening up to us. This gives comfort, peace and trust in a restless and a cruel and sometimes ugly world. Life can be so beautiful!
The Opara book/ The Permanance of the Changing is now available at www.ftn-books.com
