Abu Ghraib as you’ve never seen it before… (graphics heavy)

[Octafish]

Through his art, Colombian painter Fernando Botero breathes a new reality into the war in Iraq.



This exhibition opens soon at UC Berkeley. Details on the show and artist:

The art of Abu Ghraib

Louis Freedberg
Monday, January 22, 2007
SF Chronicle



AT LEAST two questions hang over the exhibit of Fernando Botero's paintings and drawings on the shameful abuses at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq that will open at the main library at UC Berkeley a week from today.

The first is what drove Botero, who typically draws whimsical, oversized pneumatic figures that have enormous popular appeal, to undertake these paintings in the first place.

The second is why they'll be displayed in a Berkeley library, rather than in the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim in New York, or SFMOMA.

SNIP…



He said he wasn't intending to “shock people or to accuse anyone” with his Abu Ghraib depictions. He didn't do them for commercial reasons (they're not for sale). “You do it because it is in your gut, you are upset, you are furious, you have to get it out of your system.”



Nonetheless, he hopes that as Abu Ghraib fades from memory -- the prison is slated for demolition -- the paintings will be a reminder of what happened there. “People would forget about Guernica were it not for Picasso's masterpiece,” he said. “Art is a permanent accusation.”



CONTINUED…

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/01/22/EDGC7N728U1.DTL

In the process of interpreting his reactions to what he learned about the secret torture prison in Iraq, the artist has revealed Bush and his cronies to be sadistic, brutal, criminal, undemocratic and most NAZI like. That’s what the craziest emperors of Rome and the Fuehrer of the Third Reich and the kleptocratiest Mafiya boss do. May history record the policies and behavior of Bush and his cronies to be what it is, most un-American.



Of course, the actions of the Bush Empire gives rise to the question:

Will there be an Amerikan Gulag?

Perhaps not, if enough Americans see these pictures and understand the stories they tell.

[EvolveOrConvolve]

1. Very good work

I think it would be great if Botero made prints of the works and sold them with the proceeds going to a charity helping the men and women who were abused by us.

[Octafish]

5. Humanist, Universalist: Botero as Social Critic

Botero's Abu Ghraib works are not up for sale. Still, they might be. Your idea for prints is an excellent one, EvolveOrConvolve.

Humanist / Universalist

Botero as Social Critic

To many, the idea that, inherent in numerous works by Botero, is an underlying sense of social awareness or criticism, may come as something of a surprise. In fact, the social engagement of Botero may be observed in his works in a variety of ways, traversing the limits of benign suggestion to overt outrage. In a work such as the 1975 diptych entitled The Palace, the artist deals with the suggestions of political self-importance and corruption. The presidential couple could not be more stylized. The Commander-in-Chief wears fancy military dress, a sash bisects his torso, and a heavy decoration hangs from his neck. His wife (or mistress) wears an expensive fox wrap. The grotesque head and lower body of the hapless animal hang at her waist. The atmosphere is both solemn and ridiculous. The affairs of state are implied by the paper the president carries, and the vanity of the First Lady is underscored by her ostentatious clothing. More recent compositions continue Botero's ironic observations of political life. The 1987 painting The English Ambassador depicts a British emissary to a tropical country.The man swelters in his waistcoat and jacket, bowler hat, and woolen trousers as he poses against a background of lush tropical vegetation. He would be recognizable as an English diplomat even without the tiny British flag he holds in his right hand. Even more revealing is the deadpan humor of the 1989 diptych The President and The First Lady, in which the presidential couple is depicted on horseback as they pose in a forest of banana trees.

CONTINUED...

http://karaart.com/botero/critic1.html

Also: The more people see them, the more they'll remember just what the heck the Government of these United States has been down to.



Maybe we'll all wake up, by then.

[EvolveOrConvolve]

23. His work is beautiful

And it appears that Botero has more than just a talent for creation. I would LOVE to have some of his stuff on my walls - especially as a sort of protest.

Thanks for these Octafish!

[Karenina]

24. The first pic the artist is holding

the last pic with the dog and the one above are somehow a trilogy.

[Cabcere]

2. Very interesting

and unique perspective. Thanks for posting this. :kick:

[Octafish]

8. The guy pegs it by creating something that's nearly unforgettable...

Here's more on the artist:

ARTIST HERO:
FERNANDO BOTERO

by Claudia Herrera Hudson

Fernando Botero, the Colombian artist best known for his robust, inflated forms and exaggerated human figures, is both living history, and a living legend.

Botero was born in Medelín, in the department of Antioquia, Colombia, on April 19th, 1932. His father was a travelling salesman who would travel throughout the rugged, mountainous region by donkey. He passed away suddenly of a heart attack when Fernando was only 2, leaving Fernando to grow up with his mother and 2 brothers. It is said that this tragic event left him with a permanent emptiness, a sadness he could never fully put a face to.

The Medellin of modern day is very different than it was when Botero was growing up. Back then, it was a small provincial, quiet town where the Church played a large role in everyone’s life and morality. Botero attended a school run by Jesuits who were very strict, and, to add enjoyment to his life, Botero began to draw and later paint. Growing up he became a huge fan of bullfights, which is a popular sport in Colombia, stemming from Spanish settlers. From the age of 13, he began to paint scenes of bullfights, selling them in front of the arena for 5 pesos, and later, as a professional, he spent nearly 2 years painting only that.

His talent and knowledge of art was evident from early on. When he was only 17 he contributed an article to the Medellin newspaper, El Colombiano, titled Picasso and the Nonconformity of Art which also served to reveal his avant-garde thinking of art.

CONTINUED...

http://www.myhero.com/myhero/hero.asp?hero=Fernando_Botero

Meant to say first: You're welcome, Cabcere.



And a most hearty welcome to DU!

[Cabcere]

10. Impressive

What a remarkable man! Thanks for the info (and for the welcome to DU). :hi:

[Dammit Ann]

3. Very moving.

"Art is a permanent accusation." Powerful.

Reccomended. Thanks for posting.

[Octafish]

9. ''Art is a permanent accusation.''

You're welcome, dammitann. Thank you for caring.

"Life is short, the art long." -- Socrates



Real short. And this guy also knows evil shall not triumph in this world.

[Dammit Ann]

25. "ART IS A PERMANENT ACCUSATION"

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x14421


As I was saying...

[MuseRider]

13. That is what hit me too.

A very powerful and permanent accusation. Man, those are brutal but honest. Shameful.

K&R

[mmonk]

4. Maybe generations from now,

there will be museums about the time America lost it's mind and these pieces will be there.

[Octafish]

12. The Abu Ghraib Scandal Cover-Up?

Never forget.

Although Bush and his NAZI cronies are doing all in their power we do.

The Abu Ghraib Scandal Cover-Up?

Bush insists that 'a few American troops' dishonored the country. But prisoner abuse was more widespread, and some insiders believe that much remains hidden

By Michael Hirsh and John Barry
Newsweek June 7, 2006 issue

The meeting was small and unpublicized. In a room on the third floor of the Old Executive Office Building last week, Condoleezza Rice grittily endured an hour's worth of pleading from leading human-rights activists who want to see a 9/11-style commission created to investigate the abuse of detainees in the war on terror. According to participants, the president's national-security adviser didn't repeat the line that George W. Bush had delivered to the American people in a speech two days before: that the scandal was the work of "a few American troops who dishonored our country." Nor did Rice try to make the case that by razing Iraq's Abu Ghraib Prison—a Bush proposal that took even his Defense secretary by surprise—administration officials would put the scandal behind them. "I recognize we have a very grave problem," Rice said, according to Scott Horton, a New York lawyer at the meeting whose account was corroborated by another participant. "There are major investigations going on right now to fully understand the scope and nature of it."

But numerous critics—not just in the human-rights community, but in Congress and the U.S. military as well—insist that the current probes are still too limited to bring full accountability. Some critics say Donald Rumsfeld's Defense Department is doing its best to stop potentially incriminating information from coming out, that it's deflecting Congress's inquiries and shielding higher-ups from investigation. Documents obtained by NEWSWEEK also suggest that Rumsfeld's aides are trying hard to contain the scandal, even within the Pentagon. Defense Under Secretary Douglas Feith, who is in charge of setting policy on prisoners and detainees in occupied Iraq, has banned any discussion of the still-classified report on Abu Ghraib written by Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba, which has circulated around the world. Shortly after the Taguba report leaked in early May, Feith subordinates sent an "urgent" e-mail around the Pentagon warning officials not to read the report, even though it was on Fox News. In the e-mail, a copy of which was obtained by NEWSWEEK, officials in Feith's office warn that the leak is being investigated for "criminal prosecution" and that no one should mention the Taguba report to anybody, even to family members. Feith has turned his office into a "ministry of fear," says one military lawyer. A spokesman for Feith, Maj. Paul Swiergosz, says the e-mail warning was intended to prevent employees from downloading a classified report onto unclassified computers.

More worrisome, critics say, is that the Pentagon is investigating itself. Maj. Gen. George Fay, the No. 2 in Army Military Intelligence, is in charge of the probe into whether his own intel officers directed the MPs to abuse prisoners. But so far Fay has questioned no one above the rank of colonel, military and other sources say. Among those critical of Fay is Sgt. Samuel Provance, who was formerly in military intelligence at Abu Ghraib and has told reporters in recent weeks that the Army is engaged in a cover-up. "I had to volunteer more information than was being asked of me . It was like I was adding to his burden," Provance told NEWSWEEK last week. "There are so many soldiers directly involved who haven't been talked to."

The Army has tried to silence Provance. In a May 21 disciplinary order, a copy of which was shown to NEWSWEEK, battalion commander Lt. Col. James Norwood notifies Provance that he has lost his security clearance and is being "flagged" for violating a previous order to keep quiet. That means he is ineligible for promotions, awards or security clearance. Norwood appears to threaten Provance with prosecution, saying, "There is reason for me to believe that you may have been aware of the improper treatment of the detainees at Abu Ghraib before they were reported by other soldiers." General Fay's conclusions, Norwood warns, "may reveal that you should face adverse action for your failure to report."

SNIP...

On Capitol Hill, legislators on both sides of the aisle complain testily that the Pentagon has turned into an informational black hole. Some 2,000 out of 6,000 pages were missing from the copy of the Taguba report delivered from the Pentagon to the Senate Armed Services Committee. Pentagon spokesman Larry DiRita last week called this merely an "oversight." But among the missing pages were key documents, including the final section of Taguba's lengthy questioning of Col. Thomas Pappas, commander of the 205th Military Intelligence Brigade, the unit that actually ran the interrogations in Abu Ghraib Block 1A when the abuses occurred. Sources say Pappas gave Taguba a detailed account of why he believed that "policies and procedures" at Abu Ghraib "were enacted as a specific result" of recommendations made by Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller, the former commander at Guantanamo. Miller denies that he exported to Iraq techniques used on Qaeda and Taliban suspects at Gitmo. But Pappas even had some documents to buttress his case, sources say, including one titled "Draft Update for the Secretary of Defense."

CONTINUED...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5092776/site/newsweek/

We must never forget.



You are absolutely right. Thanks for caring, mmonk.

[mmonk]

14. Thank you for the thread.

[5X]

6. Good for him. k and r. n/t

[Octafish]

17. Mark Lombardi pegged the Bush Family Evil Empire...

...before the BFEE was even a term d'art.

Mark Lombardi was a great artist, who might've become a household name, if it weren't for the BFEE.

"George W. Bush, Harken Energy and Jackson Stephens," c. 1979-90, 5th Version, a work by Mark Lombardi, from 1999, before most of American had even heard of Osama bin Bush:



The work is a social network diagram, chronicling the connections between various people, organizations, events and dates. A detail that shows just how systemic the corruption reaches:



Here's another detail. Please note the direct connections between Bath, bin Laden and W Bush.



More light:

http://www.wburg.com/0202/arts/lombardi.html

He was found in his studio, hanged, a "suicide," in the summer of 2000. After 9-11, the FBI visited an exhibition of his work and took pictures of the connections.

[malaise]

7. Wow

Just wow! Thanks.
K & R

[struggle4progress]

11. A few earlier DU threads on Botero

The art of Abu Ghraib
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=103&topic_id=119434&mesg_id=119434

'Great Crime' at Abu Ghraib Enrages and Inspires an Artist
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=103&topic_id=124067&mesg_id=124067

The Art of Abu Ghraib (Botero)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=103&topic_id=258614&mesg_id=258614

[Octafish]

15. Thank you, struggle4progress. Here's another political genius in the arts...

Zbigniew Libera.



I saw an exhibit of his work at the University of Michigan a short while ago.



Everybody in Europe knows the guy, I hear.



The guy got imprisoned by the commies for drawing cartoons about them.



That was in the late 1980s.



Appears to me that the same mindset is coming to America today.



That is, unless more people wake the heck up.



Maybe someone should ask Halliburton to explain why the Bushiz gave them contracts to build all those camps in the USA.



Thanks again for those great links featuring Fernando Botero's work. Their art is Truth. And you know what the Truth does to people.

[Cabcere]

16. Wow.

I never dreamed it would be possible to convey such a powerful message using Legos, but that's exactly what this is. Incredible. :kick:

[Octafish]

22. Zbigniew Libera photographs are pretty good, too.

Somebody like Che takes a final drag on a Rey del Mundo...



They can't kill our Spirits, thank God.

[mikelewis]

18. Why do you suppose he painted the people so thick? Even the dog is disproportionately large...

[Octafish]

26. Perhaps it's that people at the top of the pyramid don't pass anything down...

...They are bred to keep their share of what gets kicked up to them. They grow large.



Remember how they only talked about "Trickle Down" economics for a little while?
Once the elite got their temporary tax cuts through, they made them permanent.
Corporate McPravda doesn't even mention the disappearing middle class and probably won't until it is extinct.

[Taverner]

19. I see a lot of Diego Rivera's influence

Good stuff

[Cleita]

20. Kudos to you again Octafish for documenting these dire days.

You da man.

Funny, I was doing a spreadsheet trying to connect the various players between the Sauds, the bin Ladens and the Bushes. I hope I don't commit suicide.

[Ghost Dog]

21. A very mature artist.

And social commentator.

I'd certainly hang this one on my wall (ed. because it's so universal):



I wonder, at what price they sell for?