Answers to Picture 1

Answers to Picture 1:

The man in Picture 1 is Frederico Garcia Lorca. Lorca was a Spanish poet and playwright who lived from 1898—1936.

Lorca’s story:

His death was a tragic and violent one; he was murdered at the age of 38. He was executed by right-wing nationalists at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War. He was thought to have been shot. The writer, Ian Gibson, in his book The Assassination of Garcia Lorca, states that he was shot with three others at a place known as the ‘Fuente Grande’ near Granada. His burial place or remains have never been found.

His early death and tragic murder are symbolic of his life and art: blood, darkness, passion and fire. Lorca had a non-conformist side; he suffered with depression, was homosexual and had an international career and creative artistic temperament. Lorca was a very talented artist, poet and playwright. He was also a lecturer and musician (he played piano and guitar). He was experimental in much of his art.

Blood:

You may have picked up on blood. This could be a reference to Lorca’s murder, or it could be a reference to one of his most famous plays, Bodas de Sangre (‘Blood Wedding’). Blood was also a symbol that popped up frequently throughout his artistic career.

Darkness:

A sense of darkness may have been what you sensed when you tuned into Lorca. This could refer to Lorca’s own personal sufferings.

Darkness was also a major theme of his art; his Sonetos del Amor Oscuro (‘Sonnets of Dark Love’) is one example of this. Lorca was also said to be highly superstitious and the dark forces present in his words were not dramatic ploys, they appear to be very present in his psyche. You only need to read some of his poems to see this reflected.

Fire and Passion:

You may have picked up on fire. Fire usually translates into passion. This could be in reference to Lorca’s own passionate nature, the passion of his work and of his characters. You can probably see the dark passion when you tune into his eyes. There is great emotional intensity in his poetry, although most of it is veiled and there is a hint of repression in it too.