Alberto Giacometti captures the atmosphere of the 20th Century in his portraits. He uses continuous marks and lines to highlight the chaotic and tortuous world in which the Holocaust and development of the atomic bomb were some of the most frightening and horrific events in history occurring in his time. This expression of the state of the world is evident in his self portraits which are dark, unclear and undefined visions of himself in an empty canvas capturing the loneliness and isolation felt globally in the aftermath of the war. I feel that his self portraits are an attempt to make sense of the world around him and a struggle to find where we go from this point. The dark and more abstract feel to his self portraits serve as an expression of grief in the wake of these events. 

His works are characterised by an unflinching willingness to confront his culture's dark past, and unrealised potential, in works that are often done on a large, confrontational scale well suited to the subjects. It is also characteristic of his work to find signatures and names of people of historical importance, legendary figures or historical places.

He addresses controversial subjects abs themes in his work in order to evoke a response from his audience. In 1969, aged 25, Kiefer staged a series of actions called Besetzungen (Occupations), in which he had himself photographed doing Sieg Heil salutes at various European monuments. This was meant as a mockery of Hitler and the past Nazi leadership and was done at a time where Nazism wasn’t addressed within the public. He received critical comments globally for his work but few seemed to understand the intent behind this piece. 

Rae’s work has been included in many solo and group exhibitions both nationally and internationally. Her first solo show was held in 1967 at the New 57 Gallery, Edinburgh. In 1994 and 1999, she won tapestry commissions for The Festival Theatre, Edinburgh and for the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh, respectively (both carried out by the Edinburgh Tapestry Company). Rae’s work is included in many private collections in Britain, Europe and the USA, as well as in many public and corporate collections. Geography plays a huge part in her landscape work and she is inspired by her student years living up in the highlands of Scotland. Subject matter for her prints tend to the socio-political, her main interest in whatever has been shaped by the hand of man or woman, and weathered by age: an old Irish farmhouse, a door or fence gate, an ancient standing stone, a terrace of vines. She has stated that she doesn’t refer to herself as a Scottish artist, straying away from the traditional pallet of Scottish art and rather just takes inspiration from her home country for her art. Her bright and boldly coloured landscapes present the natural environment in a new way. Her work is very abstract and she chooses to create an idea or a vision of the landscape rather than painting exactly what she sees.