G is for Goya, War, the Chapman Brothers and Barron Storey

Goya,

Francisco Jose de Goya Lucientes

born on the 30th of March 1746

in Fuendetodos, Aragon, Spain

and died from a stroke at 82

in Bordeaux on the 16th of April 1828.

Source

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He was court painter to the Spanish Royal Family,
he also documented the short and long term effects of
the Peninsular War (1808-1814)
as well as the Dos de Mayo Uprising.
This series of aquatint illustrations
was entitled
"Desastres de la Guerra" (1812-1815)

Plate 3 - Source

It took 35 years for the collection of illustrations
of Goya's Disasters of War to be published due to
its criticism of the French and the Bourbons.

The plates are divided into three sections:
Plates 1 - 47 - Incidents and results of war on civilians and military personnel
Plates 48 - 64 - Effects of famine in Madrid (1811-1812)
Plates 65 - 80 - Thoughts of the liberals once the Bourbon Monarchy had been restored

Plate 71 - Against the Common Good - Source

A collection of the plates can be seen here.

The Chapman Brothers added their own perspective 
to a mint condition portfolio by adding 
either clown or puppy heads to the faces on the prints.

Source

 In an addendum to this recordings of genocide, 
the artist Barron Storey created an updated version. 
Black Iraq - where he tried to draw and paint every person
that died in the Iraq War. 
The exhibition can be seen here.

Source 

No doubt, this blog will revisit war.

Our Chosen Instrument - #3 - Michelle Taylor

Michelle Taylor is a lovely tattoo artist who resides in Hastings. She has recently opened up her own tattoo parlour in central Hastings after working with other studios for four years.  The parlour was originally a hayloft for the horses in the stables below. Is it the only working tattoo parlour with its own winching wheel? Have a look at the Monkey Paw Tattoo Parlour or better yet, use it.

instrument of choice

Michelle has worked in many sectors including the production and selling of clothes, furnishings and jewellery; worked in the homelessness sector; completed her Fine Art degree in 2007 which majored in Installations. this then laid the path for art markets, exhibitions, open submissions and a shop in Hastings called i-Candy Arts - its ethos being to make art practised involvement to all. Michelle is a multi-tasker, she worked on i-Candy at the same time as working in her own studio, running club nights. She has now settled down to produce her own nature, Japanese, cover-up, rework and bespoke drawings and tattoos. 

lace pattern for a tatto drawn by Michelle 

She counts Louise Bourgeois, Vivienne Westwood, Paula Rego, Freaks and Circus Folk, Old Photos of New York to name but a few as inspirations. She has recently finished working with Jake and Dinos Chapman in Hastings, her work can be seen here. She can be contacted for work at +44 (0) 7423059706 or through the feedback form on her website or through Twitter.