Media Release, November 28th, 2019

The Disasters of War in Miami: The Fondation Beyeler to present Goya’s legendary series of prints at Art Basel Miami Beach 2019

To kick off its 2020 exhibition devoted to the Spanish artist Francisco de Goya, opening in Riehen/Basel in May, the Fondation Beyeler is featuring a selection of twenty-five pictures from Goya’s exceptional series The Disasters of War (Desastres de la Guerra,1810–15) at its booth at this year’s Art Basel Miami Beach. The presentation is made possible by a generous loan from the Craig Robins Collection.

In the more than eighty prints of the series The Disasters of War, Goya portrays events from the Spanish War of Independence (1808–1814), which unfolded in response to ’s occupation of the Iberian Peninsula. The works depict the deeds and behavior of both the French soldiers and the Spanish insurgents that irrevocably transgressed societal certainties and conventions. They are representations of a world without morality, in which the belief in the good and rational in mankind has lost its binding nature. In light of the many civil and international wars around the world today, Goya’s relentless portrayal of the harrowing reality of war possesses the same relevance it did at the time it was created.

The Goya exhibition at the Fondation Beyeler in Riehen/Basel (May 17–August 16, 2020) brings together over seventy major paintings along with an assortment of some sixty superb drawings and thirty rare prints, including The Disasters of War. Rarely seen paintings from Spanish private collections will be featured at the Fondation Beyeler, some for the first time, together with key works from the most renowned European and American museums and private holdings. The exhibition has been developed in cooperation with the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid.

Goya Francisco de Goya (1746–1828) was one of the last outstanding painters in the European court artist tradition and one of the first pioneers of modern art. Around 1800 he was the most esteemed and successful painter in Madrid. His position allowed him to earn a reputation as a brilliant and sophisticated portraitist of the royal family, aristocracy, and haute bourgeoisie. Yet, at the same time, Goya created a space of artistic freedom in which he gave shape to the superstitions and the irrational as well as the depths and nightmares of his time in enigmatic pictures of witches’ sabbaths and Inquisition tribunals, scenes of catastrophe and cannibalism.

The Fondation Beyeler The Fondation Beyeler is a museum of modern and contemporary art in Riehen, near Basel, Switzerland. Inaugurated in 1997 and set in an idyllic park, the museum was designed by architect Renzo Piano. The Fondation Beyeler is the most-visited art museum in Switzerland and owes its special appeal to the harmonious combination of exceptional art, picturesque nature and fascinating architecture. Every year, it shows up to four temporary exhibitions including projects in public spaces and just as many new presentations of the permanent collection.

EVENT INFORMATION art.set MIAMI 2019 w/ Andrea Oliva, tINI, Behrouz Wednesday December 4th, 2019, 10pm till late The Fondation Beyeler and Nordstern have a track record of creating extraordinary experiences of contemporary art and electronic music. On the occasion of Art Basel Miami Beach they have once again teamed up to create a special night for artists, musicians and friends at Miami’s club Do Not Sit On The Furniture. Do Not Sit On The Furniture 423 16th St (8.21 mi), Miami Beach, Florida 33139 http://www.nordstern.com http://www.fondationbeyeler.ch https://donotsitonthefurniture.com

Image caption: Francisco de Goya, Tristes presentimientos de lo que ha de acontecer (Sad presentiments of what must come to pass), 1814-1815, etching with burnished , and , 17.6 x 22 cm (image), 24.8 x 34.1 cm (sheet); Museo Nacional del Prado. Madrid.

Further information: Silke Kellner-Mergenthaler Head of Communications Tel. + 41 (0)61 645 97 21, [email protected], www.fondationbeyeler.ch Fondation Beyeler, Beyeler Museum AG, Baselstrasse 77, CH-4125 Riehen

Image captions:

Francisco de Goya Francisco de Goya Grande hazaña, con muertos, 1810-1814 Tristes presentimientos de lo que ha de acontecer, Great deeds! Against the dead! 1814-1815 Etching with burnished aquatint, drypoint and engraving Sad presentiments of what must come to pass 15.4 x 20.6 cm (image), 24.8 x 34.1 cm (sheet) Etching with burnished aquatint, drypoint and engraving Museo Nacional del Prado. Madrid. 17.6 x 22 cm (image), 24.8 x 34.1 cm (sheet) Museo Nacional del Prado. Madrid.

Francisco de Goya No quieren, 1810-1814 Francisco de Goya They do not want to Las resultas, 1814-1815 Etching with burnished aquatint, drypoint and engraving The consequences 15.3 x 20.6 cm (image), 24.8 x 34.1 cm (sheet) Etching with burnished aquatint, drypoint and engraving Museo Nacional del Prado. Madrid. 17.6 x 21.7 cm (image), 24.8 x 34.1 cm (sheet) Museo Nacional del Prado. Madrid.

Francisco de Goya Y no hai remedio, 1810-1814 And it can’t be helped Etching with burnished aquatint, drypoint and engraving 14.1 x 16.8 cm (image), 24.8 x 34.1 cm (sheet) Museo Nacional del Prado. Madrid.