Originally Published in Print, April 2022.
Art by Emily Stevenson
“I feel ever so strongly that an artist must be nourished by his passions and his despairs” – Francis Bacon
The stereotype of the tortured artist is deeply embedded into pop culture. Whilst I am of the opinion that this is a harmful trope, the issues of pain and loss as major influences in many renowned artists’ work cannot be ignored. Instead of romanticising this grief inflicted by debilitating illness and death, we should, as consumers of art, allow it to inform our understanding of the very real physical impact it can have on the work of many artists and how it manifests itself in this work.
Cuban born artist Felix Gonzalez Torres transforms the mundane into profound meditations on loss and love, inspired by his partner’s diagnosis of AIDs and finally his death in 1991. Gonzalez Torres channelled their mutual suffering into his art installations, creating intriguing pieces whose message remains seared into the minds of its viewers. One of his most thought provoking installations ‘Untitled’ (Portrait of Ross in L.A.) is an allegorical representation of his partner, Ross Laycock. At first glance the installation is merely a pile of wrapped sweets, however this is granted significance by its weight – precisely 175 pounds – Ross’ body weight prior to his diagnosis. The interactive element of Gonzalez Torres’ art is just one of the things that makes it so unique. Viewers are encouraged to take a sweet, causing the pile to gradually diminish, just as Ross’ illness caused him to deteriorate before Gonzalez Torres’ eyes. The final gut-wrenching addition to the installation derives from the artist’s intention for the pile’s continuous replenishment- granting Ross eternal life through his re-embodiment in art. Another installation which I greatly admire is Gonzalez-Torres’ ‘Perfect Lovers’- yet another reminder of the transience of life and the pain inflicted on so many during the AIDs epidemic. The installation is understated, two identical clocks ticking in perfect synchrony – mechanical hearts- but tragically destined to fall out of sync with each other. Felix Gonzalez Torres died at the age of 38 just 5 years after Ross from AIDS-related causes.
Frida Kahlo’s art is undeniably characterised by pain, unrelenting chronic pain, a harsh reality with which she had to live from a very young age. This inevitably manifested itself in a great many of her most famous paintings including ‘The Broken Column’, ‘The Wounded Deer’ and ‘Henry Ford Hospital’. Many researchers believe Kahlo suffered from a condition called spina bifida which affected her spinal column’s development at an early age and exemplified later health complications drastically. At only 18 years old, Kahlo was in a bus crash which caused almost fatal injuries and left her bed bound for months. During this time, Kahlo developed a passion for painting, encouraged as a distraction from her pain. ‘The Broken Column’ was created in the aftermath of one of many surgeries Kahlo endured in her lifetime. In this self-portrait, the artist’s face is covered in tears and she stares defiantly back at the viewer. A cracked, barren landscape surrounds her and her spinal ‘column’ appears similarly cracked – her body is held together by a strapped corset-like device. Nails penetrate Kahlo’s body. ‘The Wounded Deer’, a chilling image of a young deer with Kahlo’s face and arrows piercing its skin, similarly portrays the artist’s agonising bodily trauma. Kahlo’s art also touches on other taboo subject matter such as miscarraige, strikingly portrayed in her painting entitled ‘Henry Ford Hospital’.
Most known for his universally recognisable painting ‘The Scream’, Edvard Munch’s art is permeated by heavy topics such as grief, which he was exposed to throughout his childhood and beyond. Munch’s work was largely informed by the mental health issues he developed as a result of a traumatic pattern of familial death. He was at the forefront of the expressionist movement, pouring his emotions onto the vibrant colour-infused canvas. Entries in Munch’s diary reveal that ‘The Scream’ is autobiographical, inspired by a real moment in the artist’s life which he describes almost as vividly in words. “I was walking along the street with two friends – the sun was going down – I felt a touch of melancholy. Suddenly the colour of the sky changed to blood red. I stopped walking and leaned against a fence feeling tired to death – I saw the flaming clouds like bloodstained swords – the blue-black fjord and the city – my friends went on walking – I stood there trembling with fear – and I felt how a long unending scream was going through the whole of nature.”
These three artists, Gonzalez-Torres, Kahlo and Munch, are just a select few of the masses who have left a lasting global impact due to their striking portrayal of human suffering. Issues of both physical and mental illness, loss and the overwhelming grief that follows are just a snapshot of what these artists managed to embody through visual art in their lifetimes. Undoubtedly, the subject matter portrayed in their work is both incredibly gritty and thought-provoking and will continue to evoke a profound emotional response in art consumers for years to come.
