Artist Proof, first state, 2/4. Titled, numbered, signed, and dated verso: “Plate 27: The Rodeo / AP 2/4 1st state / The celebrated cowboy ropes the fierce beast / Lombardo 2024”.  Printed in Charbonnel Payne’s Gray ink on Hahnemühle Copperplate paper. A fine impression in fine condition. Sheet measures 13 x 16 inches.

Lombardo’s latest series, The Rodeo, uses Goya’s bullfighting images from La Tauromaquia as a jumping off point. The sport of bullfighting was an escape for Goya, and Lombardo similarly uses sport or showmanship as the focus of the plates. However, a deeper look at these images reveals the environmental effects of climate change as we engage in our grand distractions.

This composition is closely tied to Goya’s plate 27. Here we see an American Rodeo event, calf roping. “The goal of this timed event is for the rider to catch the calf by throwing a loop of rope from a lariat around its neck, dismount from the horse, run to the calf, and restrain it by tying three legs together, in as short a time as possible.” This violent sport, which continues to this day, is highly controversial for the high number of animal casualties. Behind the men we see trash piling up as dark figures watch from the shadows. These baby cows are used for sport knowing that livestock animals are responsible for about 40 percent of methane emissions.