Artist: Áron Lőrincz
Exhibition title: Succubus
Curated by: Peter Bencze
Venue: Longtermhandstand, Budapest, Hungary
Date: January 31 – February 23, 2022
Photography: All images copyright and courtesy of the artists and Longtermhandstand, Budapest
Áron Lőrincz finds the themes of his paintings mainly in the world of beliefs, legends and supernatural phenomena and examines their social and scientific explanations in the context of the age. The truth is legitimized by science and the solution of a problem or a question is usually influenced by the current paradigm and ideology that is disproved from time to time with new explanations. Science seems to obliterate mysticism from the world but there are no universal answers to the certain fields of existence.
Today supernatural beings that attack at night are explained as sleep paralysis. The visual and sonic hallucinations, together with the paralysis of the limbs or even organs were difficult to explain for science earlier when religion and superstitions controlled men’s thoughts. The blurred state of consciousness on the border of sleep and wakefulness may be able to visualize demons during intense panic, as the causes of this helpless situation are unexpected and unknown. Stories about the succubus have also warned how repeated encounters with this demon can lead to deteriorating physical and mental health, and sometimes even death. Such night experiences are still justified by some as demonic visits. Those who have experienced it find the truth of a non-worldly phenomenon convincing, at least initially, because the experience is so intense and seemingly real. Rational, scientific interpretation is opposed to the strong emotional impact of the phenomenon. The feeling is the same, the appearance of the creatures varies by age and culture, but can the explanation be purely scientific?
Within the series ‘Succubus’ of Áron Lőrincz, the presented works belong to a separate unit. Their special feature is that the female demons appear on a large wooden surface reminiscent of sculpture booths. Unlike previous works in the series, the sleeping victims are not depicted here. The succubus could appear in the body of a beautiful, sensual woman, but beauty includes some physical deformities, such as a snake tail or bird-like claws. It is only female in appearance, demons are not related to physical reality, they have no gender. The ambivalent sense of the attractive but at the same time repulsive, seductive yet dangerous duality is blurred together in these figural compositions. It is symbolic in it’s visuality, blending the symbols of femininity with the visual world of fantasy, keeping the depicted theme on a current but at the same time timeless plane.
