Francisco Goya

Through his art, Francisco Goya relayed his feelings toward the political unrest that plagued Spain during his lifetime. As an artist of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Goya lived through a time of political and social upheaval, especially throughout Europe. At the time, the ideas of the Enlightenment had captivated the minds of Spain’s most influential citizens and soon, that of Goya’s. Born in Fuendetodos, Spain, in 1746, Francisco Goya came from very humble beginnings. As the son of a gilder, Goya grew up in the lower class of society, and even after his amazing success as court painter to Spanish royalty, he highly identified himself with the everyday Spaniard or majo. It is this very bond to the people that followed him throughout his life and career. Later, Goya’s portraits, drawings, etchings, and paintings would reflect an internal division that overcame him as his fame and fortune increased. Despite his future camaraderie with the Spanish elite, Goya’s early works often depicted the upper class as somewhat artificial or masked. In fact, this masked-ness is a motif in many of Goya’s works. The contrast between classes is illustrated throughout his tapestry cartoons. These cartoons accurately depict Spanish men and women doing a range of things from enjoying leisurely activities, working, and carrying out very Spanish traditions. Although Goya had a profound connection to his majos and majas, he also shared the beliefs of enlightened thinkers of the times. Figures like Jovellanos, minister to king Charles III, appealed to the other side of Goya. Jovellanos and other Spanish reformers would later be his patrons and comrades and they certainly did not advocate a traditional Spain or for the traditional views of the majevos. Goya’s artistic talents catapulted him to the top of his craft, however he did not forget his origins. Through his art alone, he illustrated the lives of Spaniards both rich and poor in a and time of struggle and