Japanese diary 2003
Roman Scheidl
2003
Artist Statement
Roman Scheidl's numerous diaries (more than sixty volumes since 1971 with more than fifteen thousand pages) are of astonishing richness and would be a good basis for reconstructing a productive life and the time that went with it. The image of a man of many interests, of a politically-minded person, of a man burning with passion for art and culture. An artist who loves his profession, which is why he (must) naturally be plagued by doubts about what he does. Travels play no small role in Scheidl's diaries, some volumes are specially marked as "travel diaries". Like the one in which a visit to Japan for several weeks in 2003 is documented in words and pictures. "Full of suspense / an old hope draws me / out into the world" one reads right at the beginning. A haiku by the traveling artist, immersed in a landscape that looks "like on the old ink drawings that have always inspired me and awakened my love for Japan". Along the way, the traveling artist of the 21st century meets the wandering (haiku) poet of the 17th century, Basho: "The old pond, ah! / A frog jumps in / The sound of water." The travel diary - like any other of Scheidl's diaries - is essentially a working diary. Besides the impressions of a mentally familiar, but ultimately very foreign country, one can participate in the creative processes and the preparations for the production of the ensemble TA MA MU, in which movement, text and image are happily combined. - Words by Walter Titz, Graz 2019
Artist Bio
1949 Born June 29th in Leopoldsdorf, Austria; 2003 First major trip to Japan featuring an exhibition in Tokyo and the TAMAMU Café performance-art series --Austria Documentation, Center for Modern Art, St. Pölten; Galerie 3, Klagenfurt; Galerie Contact, Wien; 2005 Eight-week tour of Japan with the TAMAMU Ensemble and Japanese artists; Appearances at the Aichi Expo 2005; Performances and exhibitions at Keio University Tokyo and cities of Tsukuba, Noda, Nango and Hachinoe. 2010 HOKUSAI & ROMAN SCHEIDL, One hundred views of Mount Fuji, Galerie Welz, Salzburg; 2015 DIE VERDICHTETE ZEIT, Compressing Time, Roman Scheidl, published by Bibliothek der Provinz. Book presentation and exhibition of early works (1969-1983) at ALBERTINA, Vienna; 2017 MENSCHENBILDER, Ö1 Austrian radio, Sunday, 1st January; design by: Petra Herczeg, Rainer Rosenberg.FLIEGENDE BLÄTTER (flying leaves; drawings from Paris, Zurich, Tokyo and Vienna), Museum Angerlehner, Thalheim/Wels. UNI:VERSUM, Roman Scheidl and Katharina Puschnig, Salzburg; 2018 AUF DER SUCHE NACH DER VERLORENEN MALEREI (in search of lost painting), Roman Scheidl, Verlag Bibliothek der Provinz, book presentation with live drawing, Kleine Galerie, Vienna. THE WORLD IS BUT A STROKE OF A BRUSH, Kleine Galerie, Vienna; opening: Günther Oberhollenzer.