Guilty Conscience

[ One of a Kind + Limited Edition Prints Available ]

THE 1739 EDITION: HISTORIC VS. CONTEMPORARY ART

Traditional or Modern?
Politically Correct or Incorrect?
Respectful or Irreverent?

Yukio Inouye’s Guilty Conscience series juxtaposes 18th-century intaglio copperplate etchings - originally produced by French printers Rigaud et Baron - with contemporary ultraviolet-cured typography, creating a provocative dialogue between past and present. The historical imagery, depicting scenes of aristocratic country life, is overlaid with modern text, disrupting the idyllic narrative and exposing the latent biases and contradictions that persist across centuries. The work interrogates the enduring legacies of power, privilege, and morality, challenging viewers to reflect on their complicity in these narratives.

Produced using archival materials and best practices, each piece in the series is a testament to the enduring power of art to provoke thought and inspire transformation. The Guilty Conscience series not only pays homage to the craftsmanship of 18th-century printmaking but also expands its relevance, offering a chance for us to contemplate the complexities of human behaviour and the ways in which history continues to shape our present.

The Guilty Conscience series deepens this exploration, using historical imagery as a lens to examine the biases and contradictions that shape our realities. Inouye’s work shares a conceptual kinship with artists such as Barbara Kruger and Jenny Holzer, who use text and images to interrogate power structures and societal norms. Kruger’s bold, text-based works challenge viewers to question the narratives imposed by media and culture, while Holzer’s installations use language to provoke thought and inspire change. Similarly, Inouye’s Guilty Conscience series invites viewers to confront the biases embedded in historical narratives, offering a poignant commentary on the ways in which power and privilege persist across time.