“It was never love. There was always a mutual contempt, and at some point, it probably hit a critical threshold, and we decided to go our separate ways.” This is how Jake Chapman commented in 2022 on the breakup of the artistic duo he had formed with his brother, Dinos Chapman. But, of course, every end is preceded by a journey...
That journey began in the 1980s when, while studying at the Royal College of Art in London, the brothers worked for the artistic duo Gilbert & George. At the time, they helped with some of their projects, which influenced the Chapman brothers' own art. This experience allowed them to gain practical skills and insight into the work of these iconic British artists, which shaped their approach to art – one often filled with provocative and controversial themes. In 1991, “The Chapman Brothers” made their debut with Disasters of War, an extension or materialisation of Francisco Goya’s sketches. This collection consisted of 83 miniature torture scenes, some later scaled up to life-size. Four years later, at the Venice Biennale, they exhibited these miniatures as part of the Young British Artists group, becoming world-famous artists alongside Tracey Emin and Damien Hirst.
Perhaps even then, critics had already noticed one distinct trait of this artistic duo – the total absence of taboo. This “unfiltered” approach was further demonstrated in their work Two-faced Cunt, where they again used transformed plastic mannequins. As the title suggests, it featured two faces joined by female genitalia. Many might have turned away in shock, resorting to hushed gossip… but despite its scandalous subject matter, Two-faced Cunt was auctioned at Christie’s for a record £91,000. Following this success, Jake and Dinos continued in a similar vein, creating a male version of their genital masquerade, sold for an even more astronomical sum.
After exhausting the theme of human anatomy, the brothers turned their attention to history – particularly its darker side. In 2000, they constructed Fucking Hell, another large-scale work filled with controversial themes, but one stood out above the rest. It was a diorama packed with Nazis, both alive and dead, dismembered skeletons on vehicles, and altogether there were nearly sixty thousand figures of soldiers in their glass cases. While some might have viewed the work as disparaging, many hailed it as a masterful reflection on past horrors. “Even when you create 60,000 Nazi figurines, it’s still nowhere near the scale of what actually happened. Two years of work to create that many little soldiers – and the Nazis could execute the same number of war prisoners in just six hours,” one critic noted. Perhaps the piece was so disturbingly powerful that fate took an absurd turn. After its exhibition, Hell was stored in the warehouse of influential art collector Charles Saatchi, where a fire broke out, and the entire piece was destroyed.
Another notable work is the Chapman Family Collection, created in 2002. At first glance, this collection appears to be a series of African ritual sculptures or artefacts from an ethnographic museum. However, upon closer inspection, the viewer realises that these "ritual" objects are, in fact, transformed versions of iconic McDonald’s fast-food mascots.
The philosophical undertones remain, as they were ever-present throughout the Chapmans' collaboration. Since 2003, the duo revisited not only Francisco Goya’s subjects but also the works of Auguste Rodin and Nicolas Poussin. This led to the creation of Insult to Injury, in which Goya’s sketches were modified once again, featuring Adolf Hitler’s face adorned with clown make-up alongside fictional mutants and Ronald McDonald. The Chapmans seemed to have become so fond of retouching the works of other artists that they produced a series of altered Adolf Hitler paintings titled Appropriating Hitler, depicting sunny landscapes, rainbows, and flowers. In contrast, their One Day You Will No Longer Be Loved series portrayed nobles and aristocrats with horror faces. This work sparked particularly fierce debate, with critics questioning the boundary between vandalism and art, as the paintings were not made by Jake and Dinos themselves but were purchased in the art market.
Despite (or perhaps because of) the controversy, the Chapman Brothers remain significant figures in contemporary art. Their works raise fundamental questions about the nature of violence, innocence, and human cruelty, making them highly relevant in today’s world. While their creations are not easy to digest, they compel viewers to confront the darker aspects of human existence. Since 2022, the brothers have each pursued their own solo projects.
