Δύο Ταύροι

000560 Nikos Yialouris, Two Bulls, n.d., Indian ink on paper, 90.5 × 70 cm

Between 1971 and 1972, Yialouris created a series of drawings inspired by Federico García Lorca’s poem Lament for Ignacio Sánchez Mejías. Since then, the motif of the bull has frequently returned in his work, as the animal takes on a tragic or, at times, allegorical character. The present drawing, featuring two bulls one behind the other, is possibly connected to The Labyrinth (001066). The animals are depicted with clear lines, stylized curves, and above all, with a peculiar crystalline distortion. The bulls are not realistic. Their expressionist treatment partly recalls similar works by Picasso from the interwar period, when the bull acquired particular significance in the Spanish master’s work. Yialouris does not imitate Picasso, but his drawings presuppose a familiarity with Picasso’s oeuvre.