“Guernica is to painting what Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony is to music: a cultural icon that speaks to mankind not only against war but also of hope & peace. It is a reference when speaking about genocide from El Salvador to Bosnia.”–Alejandro Escalona
This painting is one that struck me at an early age. I have never seen the original & unless I travel to Spain, probably never will, as the Spanish government now considers it a National Treasure & too fragile to undergo the stress of extensive shipping & handling required by foreign exhibitions. My first art book was one of Picasso & it featured this painting. I remember studying it at an almost obsessive level of intensity. To this day how such horror, terror, violence, and inhumanity could be perpetrated remains outside of my scope of understanding.
Despite the emotional turmoil it represents, from the time I saw this work, I had a feeling someday that I would have a copy. The original is huge, monumental in size.
Photograph showing the size of the original Guenica with a young boy as a viewer.
After a recent visit to BACK TO THE PICTURE, I bought a reproduction that could be accommodated within the confines of my apartment dining area. Below, is the result of that effort. The reproduction is a poster that has been clear coat mounted on a resin coated box, by Master resin coater Wan Chun. The process of coating the poster paper is labour intensive, and requires the utmost of patience, skill set, and technique. The ideal environment for this to be done is in an ‘airtight’ room, meaning an enclosed area that has little or no air motion. This reduces the risk factor of any imperfections in the drying process of the resin. Air motion can cause bubbles in the resin during the setting process, as was explained by Derek Hargrove, Manager & Curator of Back To The Picture. It takes a minimum of seven coats of the resin to capture just the right essence of sheen. Careful & gentle cleaning with a soft cotton cloth may be used to remove dust build up.
THE TERRIBLE MEMORY OF WAR IN A PEACEFUL ENVIRONMENT–LEAST WE FORGET!
GUERNICA by Pablo Picasso
The art of presenting a reproduction of a world famous painting.
Guernica by Pablo Picasso, 1937-cropped to show better detail.
The concept of Guernica as fully dimensional sculpted work is beautifully & reverently depicted in this You Tube Video.
Thomas Outt 