Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts’ new exhibit War and Discontent conveys how artists can depict gruesome historical events or ideas creatively, with both educational and cathartic results. War and Discontent is sure to please art and history fans alike. The small, yet compelling, exhibit contains a variety of media: paintings, etchings, sculptures and videos from artists spanning hundreds of years.
The three most famous items in the exhibit are Edouard Manet’s Execution of the Emperor Maximilian (1876), Pablo Picasso’s Rape of the Sabine Women (1963) and Franciso y Lucientes Goya’s series of etchings titled Disasters of War (1863). These items all reflect an artist’s response to a specific event in history.
Goya’s etchings take up much of the exhibit. The etchings depict different scenes of violence and terror that tore through Spain after Napoleon’s invasion in 1808. Goya depicted both demonstrations of terror against the Spanish people as well as their acts of strength. One plate is titled Que Valor! [What courage!] and depicts a woman firing a cannon in the midst of heavy gunfire, with several dead men at her feet.
Above each plate of Goya’s Disasters of War series hangs a similar, modern drawing by Jake and Dinos Chapman. According to the exhibit’s press release, the two artists were inspired by Goya’s work and decided to emulate the etchings while adding their own twist to them in 1999. Their drawings convey a much more abstract message about the sorrows of war.
The most relevant work in the exhibit is Andy Warhol’s Statue of Liberty (1986). This painting hangs near the entrance of the gallery and features a close-up view of lady liberty overlaid in dark army camouflage. Warhol uses the iconic image to convey the provocative idea that freedom and American values can have a dark side, still relevant twenty years after its creation.
War and Discontent’s main flaw is its size: the exhibit is only one small room featuring only thirty-six pieces. The gallery only features about a dozen pieces of art. However, the exhibit is a great new addition to the MFA and will leave audiences dazzled and disturbed.