I dunno, I think that’s part of the magic of the Black Paintings. To me, what makes them truly unsettling (in the best way) is the fact that he painted them exclusively for his own desire and that we’re limited to guessing the subject matter (which, although ambiguous, was undoubtedly dark).
Part of this art is that there really are no “facts”. It was painted on the wall of his home some time before his death but wasn’t found before he died. He never gave it a name or said anything about it.
One of my favorites. I wish we knew if that’s really what he intended to depict - people just guessed.
I dunno, I think that’s part of the magic of the Black Paintings. To me, what makes them truly unsettling (in the best way) is the fact that he painted them exclusively for his own desire and that we’re limited to guessing the subject matter (which, although ambiguous, was undoubtedly dark).
kolpeshtheyardstick made a pretty great video essay about the work and its historical context and cultural impact. (01:04:19)
I never heard about how it was made before and that really changed how I view the work.
Thanks, I’ll listen to this on the commute home.
Insanity created some of the most definitely gothic images ever. Goya is so slept on. I’m especially partial to his etchings
The political prints about Spain and Spanish politics are particularly interesting to me
True, I just always want to know the facts about everything, no matter how insignificant, for historical posterity and my own curiosity.
Part of this art is that there really are no “facts”. It was painted on the wall of his home some time before his death but wasn’t found before he died. He never gave it a name or said anything about it.
There are facts, they just went with him to his grave.
Fair point. I guess it would be better to say that there isn’t much to learn about in terms of hard facts.
Yeah he didn’t even actually name this painting. We really don’t know who the subjects are for sure.
4 feet tall and painted directly onto the wall of his dining room, too. My kinda guy.