Press Release - Goya at the Art Center Hugo Voeten

Press Release April 30th 2013 GOYA at the Art Center Hugo Voeten A year after its opening, the Art Center Hugo Voeten presents its second exhibition. The Art Center leads us into the dark universe of Francisco de Goya, the ‘enfant terrible’ of Spanish Romanticism. Goya was not only a renowned painter, but also excelled as a master-­‐graphicist. 47 pictures from a private collection will be on display in Herentals. The focus lies on his last great series of etchings: Los Proverbios (The Proverbs) , in which the artist confronts us in an impressive way with the absurdity of life. In a Breughelian fantasy world, he expresses his sharp criticism on a hypocritical society. In addition to these Proverbs, a number of etchings from the other series Los Capricios, Desastres de la Guerra and La Tauromaquia get a special place in the exhibition. Goya, arguably the first true ‘Modern artist’, is rightly called ‘the Godfather of Expressionism and Surrealism’, which is certainly proved by this interesting and confronting exhibition. Practical information: ‘Goya – Los Proverbios’ can be visited at the Art Center Hugo Voeten from May 2nd until June 29th 2013, from Wednesday till Saturday afternoon between 13h30 and 17h00. During the holiday weekend from May 9th till May 12th, the Art Center will be closed. The entrance fee is 5 EUR, or 3 EUR for students, 65+ and 21-­‐. Moreover, the Art Center Hugo Voeten continues its monthly tours each first Sunday of the month at 10h30 and 14h00 (no reservation required). Groups remain always welcome after reservation. More info on www.artcenter.hugovoeten.org. For more information: Myriam Geurts Bart Michiels Artistic coordinator coordinator myriam@artcenter.hugovoeten.org bart@office.hugovoeten.org Art Center Hugo Voeten -­‐ Vennen 23 -­‐ 2200 Herentals -­‐ Belgium Tel. +32 475 555 125 -­‐ www.artcenter.hugovoeten.org Background information: GOYA (1746 – 1828) Los Proverbios (The Proverbs) Goya – The “enfant terrible” of Spanish Romanticism Romanticism, one of the largest cultural periods from the second half of the 18th and the first half of the 19th century, is a reaction to the Enlightenment. Its leading elements are not rationalism or reason, but emotions. The revolutionary slogan “Liberty, equality, fraternity” still seemed like an empty hope for many at the time. Comfort during such troubled ages could also be found in nature or in the passionate hero cults. The academic rules could no longer hold artists from bitter ctiricism against the hypocrisy of society. On 30 March 1746, in Fuendetodos, near Saragossa, Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was born – the most significant Spanish painter and graphic artist of the 18th century. He became a painter at the court of Madrid and died in Bordeaux on 16 April 1828. The new times during which the artist could express himself more freely, in addition to the personal tragedies of a tormented man, were what determined his extraordinary talent. Goya, a fascinating painter and graphic artist Projects for the Royal Tapestry and portraits of Spanish noblemen, although holding a fibre of irony in them, led to Goya’s first successes. His works were seen as the Spanish version of the Rococo style, as well as having pastoral, allegorical and mythological scenes, painted in bright colors. As a bon vivant, Goya relished the joys of life. Alas, after the high tide came the ebb, and after a series of personal failures the smile in his art shifted to a grimace. Due to a mysterious illness Goya became deaf at the age of 47. He turned into a lonely, bitter person. His personal drama, the downfall of society, the crisis in moral values and religious doubts took their toll. Bizarre, morbid themes and frightening creatures mirrored the artist’s state of mind. In 1819 Goya returned to his Quinta del Sordo (Villa of the Deaf) in the province surrounding Madrid. His tormented spirit blasted over the walls in the shape of fourteen Pinturas negras (Black Paintings) depicting painful, horrifying scenes. Something somber had entered inside him – the anger and cruelty that resulted from the air of the time and his personal tragedies. The dark colors were underlined with emotional weight, while light became a dramatic element. The rigid compositions were broken down. The artist observed the world in a subjective and emotional way, without any academic rules. Notably, this is what Romanticism means. Goya, a master of engraving Bedbound, without any more strength left to paint, Goya made his first engravings. The different techniques that he used in his graphics were so complex that they remain to this day an object of exploration. With Five Large Series of Graphics the master clearly showed his criticism against the social, political and religious hypocrisy of his era: Los Capricios (1799), Desastres de la Guerra (от 1810), La Tauromaquia (1816) and Los Disparates or Los Proverbios (1864,1877). Los Capricios (Caprichos) Here is presented the hypocrisy of “Black Spain”, the corruption of the Catholic Church, the superstition of witchery, the arrogance of the Spanish aristocracy, as well as love and prostitution. These 80 engravings in etching and aquatint bring fame to Goya outside of Spain. Desastres de la Guerra (The Disasters of War) In Goya’s shocking war there are no heroes or glory, but only death, mutilation, torturous pain and humiliation. La Tauromaquia (Bullfights) This series presents in a brilliant way the passion that Goya had for bullfighting and in its own right it represents a historic view on this typically Spanish tradition. The exhibition immerses us in the hallucinogenic world that Goya created in his last series: Los Disparates (“The Nonsense”) or Los Proverbios (“The Proverbs”). The exhibited works belong to a private collection. Evidently Goya made these etchings with aquatint right after creating La Tauromaquia, in the years between 1819 and 1823, because the copper plaques match. The war with the French and the repressive actions of the King of Spain are probable explanations as to why the engravings in etching are publicly presented only after Goya’s death. The Academy “San Fernando” in Madrid published 18 etchings in 1864, which was 36 years after his death.In 1877 the French art magazine L’Art published for the first time four other engravings in the same format. Most probably all of these 22 works belong to the same series, and the collection still remains incomplete. Goya was at an older age when he created this series, and it is the most difficult one to interpret, even more so because there are no additional texts to accompany it. Nonetheless, these engravings probably relate to famous sayings of the time, which is evident in the change of the title from Los Disparates (meaning “The Nonsense”) to Los Proverbios (meaning “The Proverbs”). In a fantastical Brueghelian world we see alternating visions of sexual imagery and scences of violence. The artist does not retain his criticism against the regime. Goya drags us down to his horrible depression, making us witness his ideas about the absurdity of life, the evil powers, the prevalence of old age, suffering and death. Even though it is difficult to identify some sort of red string connecting it all, a certain theme is strongly present. This is a rich, imaginary world, connected to nighttime and the Carnival. Carnival is celebrated in the whole of Europe during the seven days leading up to Lent. It is a continuous celebration, as well as—and mostly that—a ritual of transforming opposing forces. Social roles are reversed, and norms of decent behavior do not apply. This hypocritical contrast between such excessive acts and the penance of the following fasting and abstinence period seem to be what fascinated Goya. The image of frivolity is found in engraving 1 – “Female Folly”, where a group of women are playfully throwing about a bunch of dolls in the air using a blanket. Lewd behavior is a central theme, and it is unleashed during Carnival. An example is engraving 11 – “The Abduction with the Horse”. An untamed horse captures a woman, while at the background another woman vanishes with wild passion within the muzzle of a monster. The Proverbs are probably meant to make the viewer think about the stupidity of people, about marriage and voluptuousness, old age and death. As a great representative of the Romantic period Goya wanted to show humanity the “change” that the Enlightenment had promised and was still being awaited. Goethe once replied to the question of the difference between Classicism and Romanticism as follows: “Classicism is health. Romanticism is sickness.”Were then Hieronymus Bosch and Pieter Brueghel also sick when they depicted in a shocking manner for people to see the stupidity of human behavior of the era? Weren’t they rather moralists, who wanted to open the eyes of the people, using pungent criticism? Goya presented himself as one of the greatest artists in graphics of all times, both when it comes to technique and also to content. Many think of him as the “first modern painter” and even as a predecessor of Expressionism and Surrealism. Goya died in Bordeaux in a voluntary exile after changing his political views. He was 82 years old at the time.