The Chapmans Paint Over Hitler and Remake “Hell”

Undeterred by the loss of “Hell” in the Momart fire, the Chapmans unveil a new version:

“You couldn’t fail to see something funny about Hell being on fire,” said Jake. Their first thought was: let’s do it again. Jake said: “We wanted to rescue the work from the sentimentality that soon clothed the work after it burned, an affection for the work that wasn’t there when it actually existed as an object, so the idea of a world without Hell was unacceptable to us.

But the real controversy comes when they paint over Hitler’s student artwork. Here’s the Times of London story, which is positive, and the Guardian’s take as well as the NY Sun’s take.

The most sensible quote:

James Smith, chief executive of the Holocaust Centre in Newark, said: “Hitler’s mediocrity and blandness as an artist illustrate that it takes neither a genius nor a psychopath to organise genocide, and as such, his paintings do have some value as historical artefacts. Painting over his originals to make a point about the past and its relation to the present is probably the most appropriate form of vandalism I have encountered.”

Jake and Dinos Chapman go to work on ‘abject’ Hitler (Times UK)

The Chapmans journey to Hell and back (Times UK)

Hitler gets Chapman treatment as Hell rises from the ashes (Guardian)

Chapman Brothers Make Their Own Hell (NY Sun)