Cian McCrory reviews Brian Maguire’s exhibition “La Grande Illusion” at Hugh Lane Gallery
Every day, individuals open their feeds, look at the news, and see posters on the streets about the ongoing wars and terror that are occurring around the world. In an age where people have become desensitised to the violence occurring, Brian Maguire (along with contributions from Lucy Cotter, Michael Dempsey, Marc Donnadieu, and Christian Faune) forces us to acknowledge both the omitted and committed violence that occurs in our world.
The gruesome scenes portrayed by Maguire show us all the brutal reality which many of us are unable to come to terms with.
At Hugh Lane Gallery, Brian Maguire has opened an exhibit titled ‘La Grande Illusion’ in which he takes photographs, testimonies, and evidence collected by police and other investigative groups to create art. He describes the scenes he creates as brutal, and one walk through this exhibition sheds a light on his point.
The gruesome scenes portrayed by Maguire show us all the brutal reality which many of us are unable to come to terms with. In his own words, “I didn’t know I had a limit.” Most of the pieces are focused on the violence occurring in the Americas, and the Middle East, and the overall corruption and colonial legacy which has led to these horrific tragedies.
Walking through the gallery, you will see scenes which are based on real photographs. The second gallery you walk into focuses on the United States-Mexico border and the violence created by cartels in the region. You will notice with all his paintings there is a focus on the victims. Whether it be the victims who are affected by such violence or vast fields which are destroyed by deforestation and land clearing efforts, they are represented in each painting.
The paintings follow a common theme. The background is often filled with muted colours which draws the viewer's eyes towards the centre point of the photo. For example, in one of his paintings from Arizona, Maguire shows the Arizona desert with a beautiful sunset in the background and a vast canyon which surrounds a human skull.
Although these paintings are shown through his art style, one is unable to separate the horrific reality that these paintings are based on real photographs.
The viewer is immediately drawn to the skull in the centre because of the stand-out colour choice, and possibly because of the shock one may have while seeing a skull draped in a beautiful valley. The most shocking scene is in the very last gallery, where Maguire depicts again the violence created by cartels. He has created portraits of the missing people involved, forcing focus on the victims who have been ignored by the authorities to this day.
Along with this, Maguire shows a terrifying reality through his ability to blur yet reveal at the same time. Many photos show gruesome scenes of missing body parts , ritualistic killings, and massacres by cartels to show power. Although these paintings are shown through his art style, one is unable to separate the horrific reality that these paintings are based on real photographs.
While Maguire does have his focus on the people who are involved in the ongoing violence, he does not neglect the reasons why these things occur as well as the regions affected. Maguire critiques the glorification of violence through his paintings of military monuments, and the rise of corrupt leaders by showing hollow men waving the Roman salute in their deep black boots.
His use of colour again can be seen here and in his paintings on the destruction of Aleppo and the Amazon. Bright colours are used to signify the beauty of the region while the bold dark colours of pollution, refugee camps, and machinery - the only exception to this are the bright flames burning the Amazon while dust and soot litter the ground, all of which reveal the true horrors occurring in these areas.