We can talk here about functional art with a sacred creation – the works can be practically used for thoughts and have an organizing effect on the spirit like art in general. However, if you consciously look at the visuals for a longer time, they become a part of meditation by themselves, when the mind rests on the one and only experience of the present moment. The works invite to rediscover contact between ancient teachings and today’s viewer.
Kadi Tombak relies on his personal knowledge of sacred symbols and mantras when creating his art. He has lived on the island of Bali for 7 years since 2014, where he delved into Hinduism and Buddhism, working with the high priests and holy men and women of Bali.
Kadi’s works depict mantras, spells, song circles, wheels on the walls, to which the viewer adds wind and momentum. He has studied with special interest the teachings of the Vedas and the Buddha and the symbols of heritage wisdom to make visible to the world today. He is attracted by the order and peace of sacred geometry and the eloquence of its symbols.
Kadi himself calls his works yantras, sacred geometric discs. Yantra means a set of symbols that serve as an instrument with a specific function that Kadi considers his works to be, an instrument that creates bridges between past and present experience to connect them across time.
Kad has been most interested in Advaita Vedanta, the teachings of the Buddha, belonging to the Vedic school in his continuing theological studies. In Bali, his special field of study was the means of priestly communication between the visible and invisible worlds.
The collection of works exhibited in the Haus Gallery is a delicate and filigree craft, which is framed in the frames chosen by the author himself, to emphasize the important touch of hand and thought in the entire work process. The works are a direct result of Kadi’s 7-year pilgrimage and dedication to Buddhist heritage, which encouraged him to bring sacred geometry as a geometry of consciousness into his creative self-expression, making it personally visible.
