Stefan Kürten: Every Day is Like Sunday

Every day is like Sunday, every day is silent and gray.

                                                               —The Smiths

Memory and myth converge in the paintings of German artist Stefan Kürten.  Lush, floral gardens in suburban settings belie the silent and gray remembrances of childhood. Embodying our search for a natural utopia, these sun-dappled gardens are invented landscapes created for refuge, reflection, and rejuvenation.  The private Eden of the suburban garden neatly sums up the Christian tradition of Sunday as a day of rest and family.

The happily-ever-after, white-picket-fenced adult fairytale of eternal bliss teeters on a pre-fabricated, termite-infested foundation.  Eternal childhood prefers the woods across the street, close enough to civilization and safety, but with that happy semblance of wildness.  The sweet dream of nature as nurturing and harmonious is preserved in gold, long after puberty’s rude awakening.