FIGURES OF SPEECH or THE SILENCE OF THE AFTER-GLIMPSE

In 2002 C. Hirtl presented 141 large tempera paintings, the so-called "main clauses" (1990-2002), for the Salzlager (salt depot) of the City of Hall in Tirol

Hirtl works with or rather towards the realization of philosophical concepts. The paintings in this installation "Figures of Speech or The Silence of the After-Glimpse" are pictorial approaches towards basic aspects of human existence: time, space, self, language, and the contrast between the exterior/interior. Underlying these categories is a multitude of ideas originating in the realms of phenomenology, hermeneutics, and the Japanese Kyoto School. Each sign-no matter how much the original kanji may have been transformed-serves as a special marker. What we can see here is a shorthand of thinking-typical of Hirtl's process of work.