The greatest trick the devil ever played was convincing the world that he did not exist,” French poet Charles Baudelaire said. He understood the fleeting sense of reality when he used this analogy. Carl Gombert demonstrated this idea and combined it with what he called “plausible fiction” in his art gallery hosted at Elizabethtown College on Thursday, Oct. 10.
Although this concept can get confusing at times, Gombert made it very evident to even the most inexperienced of viewers. How did he do it? Through the complex yet eloquently simple use of an age-old symbol: the circle.
“As an artist I am terminally curious,” Gombert said. So much of this world fascinates him that everything becomes fair game. Naturally, the circle fits his style. “The circle is magic; it’s infinite,” he said. “I like to create art that rewards the diligent viewer.” His art often contains hidden concepts or multiple meanings. He captured this idea beautifully through two very unfamiliar styles of art: straight lines and rubber stamps.
At first glance, the drawings brought to the gallery were nothing short of magnificent. The mind goes a mile a minute seeing a vast array of interconnecting circles and patterns all precisely planned and strategically placed. It is not until closer examination that something amazing happens. The circles and bent lines that were so perfectly clear before turn into a mess of straight lines seemingly unrelated. “Look close,” Gombert said. “There is not one curved line in the entire drawing.”
He later went on to describe how this phenomenon occurs. “All I did was draw a bunch of straight lines seven and a half degrees apart. I started with a rough idea and let it lead me. I had no idea this is what I would end up with.” A little sign posted next to the art read: “Curves are illusions.”
Gombert’s “straight circle” reinforces the idea that nothing is as it seems. The key here is his use of different perspectives. Up close, it does not matter how much examination is done. The only things seen are straight lines. It takes a deep breath and a step back to see the hidden elements.
The second set of works was less structured but just as interconnected. These pieces were all done on circular paper where Gombert used a variation of stamps to create different patterns and designs.
In one particular piece a stunning portrait of a young woman was seen, but upon closer inspection, the entire piece was made up of tiny skull stamps. None of the students realized this until Gombert focused their attention on the fine detail. A young beauty was made up completely of bones and skulls. The irony was like heavy smog throughout the room.
Many of Gombert’s pieces have been displayed in art exhibits and competitions throughout the world. Some of his artistic style and learning came from the schools he attended. From Texas Tech University to the University of Akron, Ohio, he has been involved in a number of art schools, sometimes as a student, other times as an instructor.
But when asked by a student how he comes up with ideas he responded, “Ideas are a dime a dozen. There are so many things that spark inspiration, but the trick is deciphering the good ideas from the bad ones.” He went on to tie in Sturgeon’s law which states, “90 percent of everything is crap.” The artist’s job is like that of a locksmith: to figure out which keys are essential to open the door and which ones are worthless.
There are an infinite number of ways in which art serves as a form of communication. Sometimes the message is clear, other times it is hidden. That is the beauty of art. It allows for two strangers to go places language often inhibits. The circle is a universal interpreter, which allows artists to grasp that sense of plausible fiction and play tricks on the viewer’s mind. The greatest trick Gombert ever played was convincing the world they saw things that never really existed.
