Philosophy

Reality is what we create by changing what is presented to us. It is only through us that it becomes effective. But it becomes effective within the framework of what is presented to us, of nature, of creation. Prices, made by people, are important, Martin designed pictures with price tags, but he did not stop at the price, but put them under the sign of values and, in further consequence, dignity. Like the birds in the cage, largely inhibited in flight, perhaps enjoying a good time, but not being able to realize their possibilities, so man cannot, if he only focuses on the price. A horse plastered with price tags, but not completely covered by them, points to the “more”. 

Martin Roth was looking for this more, for dignity. I was able to discuss this with him. Martin Roth was a questioning, scrutinizing person. He was not satisfied with the facts as they were presented to him, he sought to understand what was behind them. With the eyes of a parrot flying through the landscape, with the organs of a fish, he sought to fathom the background, always in search of what is stronger and more enduring than we are. The moments that go beyond reality but are effective in it were his element, in the reduction to the simple, he found an approach to the complex. And he was convinced that this underlying force, nature, is stronger than all human desires, with their sometimes devastating effects. 

The canaries fly over the destroyed battlefield, the flowers push their way out of the rubble onto the surface, the fish swim, despite all the pollution in the water. For Martin Roth, the end was not just a termination, but he saw it as a sign of completion. What at first glance appears weak, imperfect, fragile, for which Martin Roth developed a sensitive eye, can survive, the debris of the destroyed country becomes the building block of a new reality. Only in this way can the possibilities be realized, from what is held on to on earth and what holds on to become an impetus for something beyond. 

A short story modified by Martin Roth and applied to him: an eagle chick grows up in the chicken yard, behaving like a chicken, constantly running, picking up grains, fluttering a short distance. One day an eagle flies over the chicken yard, majestically sailing in the air. The chickens, looking up at him, point out: “That’s not for us, the high and unsafe airspace. Our place is the chicken yard.” The young eagle, raised like a chicken, suddenly feels the power of the eagle within him, spreads his wings and takes to the air. He is proud, but at the same time awestruck by the grandeur and beauty of nature. 

Could this not be a parable for Martin Roth, who always had this better world above us in his sights – and has now taken off into it?

By: Neuhold, Leopold, Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. theol.