The Caprichos, by Emily Lombardo, is a series of 80 etchings which are in direct conversation and homage to Francisco Goya’s Los Caprichos, 1799. Both reveal the dark underbelly of cultural movements which ultimately serve to divide society across economic, racial, political, religious, and gender lines.

Goya’s series explores the artist’s dissatisfaction and disgust with humanity’s follies during the Enlightenment, a period in which much of the Western world embraced reason and scientific discovery, yet the artist’s native Spain experienced devastating wars, economic humiliation, and religious fanaticism. Though inspired by his own society, Goya’s prints expose humanity’s universal failings. They reveal the dangerous tendency of all cultural movements to give way to fascism and inequity.

Lombardo continues this investigation within the modern, globalized world, bringing these same issues into contemporary light through a queer feminist lens. Using Goya’s work as a point of departure, Lombardo showcases recognizable figures and events – including Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, Miley Cyrus’s act at the 2013 MTV VMAs, and Damien Hirst’s diamond skulls – to critique everything from international politics and the art market to gender roles and societal expectations. The use of recognizable politicians, celebrities, events and institutions make The Caprichos instantly accessible to present-day viewers.

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