Artist Shoots Picasso's Guernica

Oct. 19, 2009 - PRLog -- " It  took about 12 hours of non stop shooting to get this painting done right" says Toronto artist Viktor Mitic." Firing live ammunition into a version of  Picasso's Guernica named "Blasted Guernica" is the latest controversial piece by Serbian born, Canadian artist who has shocked the nation by displaying a painting of Jesus  titled "Hole Jesus" done in bullet holes  at Trias Gallery a few months back ."If you would have told me a year or so ago, that  I would be making artwork  by punching holes into my own paintings using automatic rifles and handguns , I would've told you to get your head checked ", Mitic continues. "It was a huge task getting this painting to a firing range and then shooting quite a few thousand rounds of ammo into it to form the outline of the subjects  within the composition".  Picasso's Guernica shows the tragedies of war and the suffering it inflicts upon individuals, particularly innocent civilians. Mitic on the other hand wanted to amplify the feeling of ultimate loss by shooting holes and leaving burn marks in the composition. "Sounds off gunfire and bullets zooming by the villagers trying to escape death were a reality for them, many have died".  "Blasted Guernica "is the  same size as the original Picasso's painting done in 1937, it measures 349 cm × 776 cm (137.4 in × 305.5 in). It will be on show  at the prestigious  Toronto International Art Fair  (TIAF) at the Metro Convention Center in Toronto,Ontario, October 22-26 2009.

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ART OR WAR website owner has produced a major body of work that spans a career of over two decades. For a number of years, he was painting non-representational paintings using natural elements such as rain and hail to render surfaces of the paintings in oils on canvas. Mitic has successfully integrated various materials into his recent body of work: charcoal, graphite, oil, acrylic, watercolour, pen and ink, and japanese traditional natural pigment. He has recently developed a distinctive, some would say provocative, method; he paints portraits of international iconic images and later shoots the outline of the figures using various weapons and live ammunition. He has had many successful solo and group shows of his paintings in Europe, the United States, Canada, and, most recently, Japan.