Originally Posted by Bit of a Dandy

Wow! Mindblowing pictures! 'Disturbing' doesn't usually cut it with me - after all, shock is one of the easist responses to evoke, especially where art is concerned - but there is no denying Odd Nerdrum's genuine talent. I had not heard of him before, so my initial reaction, when scrolling down the page, was that I was looking at the dusty paintings of some long gone Dutch master, until jarred to my senses by Amputation...and I suppose it is that effect which Nerdrum is striving for, to make us look at classically styled art with a fresh eye, rather than jaded disdain, and to illustrate that modern art genres do not have the monopoly on the power to offend. I particularly like the vein of blacker-than-black humour that evidently runs through his work - those self portraits seem to mock Rembrandt's similar endeavours - and my favourite piece, The Murder Of Andreas Baader, is grimly amusing when you know its factual context. (I don't believe that the imprisoned Andreas 'shot himself in the back of the head' either).

This is a great idea for a thread - I may post something about Ernst Ludwig Kirchner or Paul Delvaux when I've got more time.