15 Jul 2008

Fernando Botero's Abu Ghraib

Aside from Botero, surprisingly few major artists have taken on the subject of torture at Abu Ghraib. One notable exception is Richard Serra, who translated the iconic image of the hooded prisoner with outstretched arms into a crude grease-stick drawing framed by the slogan "Stop Bush." It may be that the incidents in Iraq have yet to be culturally digested. And perhaps some artists also feel that the photographs taken by the American guards and later released to the press are themselves the most powerful visual indictments of the crimes committed there.

Fernando Botero's Abu Ghraib on Slate.com