"I am Goya! The eye sockets of the funnels were pecked out by a raven flying to the naked field. I am Gore. So wrote Andrei Voznesensky in his famous poem, confirming the existing opinion that modern man perceives the great Spaniard, first of all, as the creator of gloomy, frightening and difficult to understand creations.

Meanwhile, Francisco Goya is not only hunger and hanged women. First of all, he is the first modernist artist who changed the classical idea of ​​composition in painting. Goya is rightly considered the link between old and new art, the heir to Velazquez and the predecessor of Manet. In his paintings, there is both the sensuality and clarity of past centuries, and the flat anti-illusionism of the modern era.

Goya did not have a favorite genre. He painted landscapes and still lifes. He was equally good at the faces of pompous nobles and the alluring features of female bodies. His brushes belong to bright historical canvases and paintings that ingeniously convey the content of biblical stories. But in the work of Goya there is one feature that you will not find in other artists. No one has ever portrayed cruelty, superstition and madness so convincingly and authentically. Goya managed to show the most extreme and repulsive properties of human nature with maximum realism and honesty. This feature of his artistic nature was most clearly manifested in the so-called “Black Paintings”, a complex of frescoes with which Goya covered the walls of his house, located on the outskirts of Madrid.

In 1819, Goya moved from Madrid to a country house with an estate known as Quinta del Sordo (House of the Deaf).

Quinta del Sordo (House of the Deaf). The drawing was made by Saint Elma Goutier in 1877. Goya's house is a small building on the left. The right wing was erected after the death of the artist.

By this time, the artist had experienced a series of personal tragedies: the death of his wife and several children, separation from close friends, a serious illness that caused him to become deaf. Settling outside the city, in a quiet place across the Manzanares River, Goya hopes to find peace of mind and avoid gossip around his relationship with Leocadia Weiss, a young beautiful woman who at that time was married to a wealthy merchant Isidoro Weiss.

But the difficult situation in the country, which the artist is acutely experiencing, and a severe heart attack, have a devastating effect on his health and psyche. Goya gets depressed. He does not see anything joyful and bright in the world around him. Trying to cope with internal chaos and longing, Goya paints fifteen paintings with oil paints on the walls of the rooms of his house, which were later called “black” for their disturbing mood and the predominance of dark tones in the palette. Some of them are devoted to biblical or mythological subjects, but basically the "Black Paintings" are gloomy creations of the artist's imagination.

There are many explanations for the philosophical and symbolic meaning of the paintings from the "House of the Deaf". Some researchers of Goya's work believe that the "Black Paintings" are generally incomprehensible. What are these frescoes? Projections of nightmares, imprinted hallucinations of a sick mind or encrypted prophecies of future troubles awaiting both Goya himself and all of humanity? There is no single answer.

However, it can be said with certainty that in the "Black Paintings" Goya, perhaps spontaneously and unintentionally, in the form of frightening mysterious images expressed what tormented and worried him: the civil war, the collapse of the Spanish revolution, relations with Leocadia Weiss, his own inevitable aging and the approaching death. The location of the "black paintings" on the walls of the "House of the Deaf" the artist subordinated to a certain plan, combining his creation into a single complex, which can be divided into two parts: lower and upper. Therefore, in order to "read" the paintings of Quinta del Sordo, to understand their hidden meaning, one must proceed not only from what is depicted on the frescoes, but also take into account their spatial relationships with each other.

Frescoes on the first floor

In the long elongated room of the lower floor, in the piers, there were seven frescoes, which were made in the same style and represented a complete composition.

Two portraits were placed on both sides of the front door: presumably, the master himself and his housekeeper Leokadia Weiss, who later became the mistress of the house.

The portrait of Leocadia, located on the left side, depicts a young elegant woman who is leaning against the grave fence.

What does grave mean? Perhaps Goya wanted to show that Leocadia is waiting for the death of her husband, who prevents her from becoming the artist's legal wife. Or is it the grave of Goya himself and the portrait speaks of the gloomy forebodings that seized him?

To the right of the door are "Two Old Men".

An old man with a long beard, reminiscent of a figure from Goya's drawing "I'm still studying", most likely depicts the painter himself. The second figure is the demon of his inspiration or the infernal tempter, who is forced to shout into the deaf artist's ear so that he can hear him.

In the recess above the door - "Two old women eating from a common dish." Little attention is paid to this fresco, but it is of great importance for the whole composition. The figures depicted on it not only eat, but also point to some place outside the space of the picture. Where are their fingers pointing?

Maybe the artist parodied himself, alluding to the portraits of the Duchess of Alba that he once painted?

But most likely, the old women point to Goya, as if reminding him of senile infirmity and imminent death.

On the opposite wall to the front door, Goya painted two paintings separated by a window, which later became the most famous among his contemporary admirers: “Saturn devouring his children” and “Judith chopping off the head of Holofernes”, which, like the frescoes at the front door, are images of Goya and Leocadia, but symbolic.

Having identified himself with Saturn, Goya expressed his fear for his son Javier, whom he was afraid of destroying by improper upbringing, jealousy or unjust anger. The ugly pagan deity eating his own child is an emotional metaphor for the inevitable clash of fathers and children.

In the image of Judith, personifying the power of a woman over a man, Goya's experiences associated with his aging and fading of strength were reflected. Obviously, the relationship with Leocadia intensified this bitter feeling.

To the left of the "Leocadia", on a large longitudinal wall between the windows, there was a huge frieze "Witches Sabbath" or "Big Goat". Opposite him on the right wall is the frieze “Pilgrimage to St. Isidore”, depicting the annual festivities held in Madrid.

Goya has previously addressed the topic of witchcraft and Satanism. Witches were present as the main characters in his famous engravings "Caprichos". In 1798, he painted a painting that bore the same name as the fresco in The House of the Deaf. But, apparently, the artist was not interested in magic, as such, but in the superstitions that existed at that time in Spanish society. The Witches' Sabbath, despite its oppressive and disturbing mood, is most likely a satirical work in which Goya ridicules human stupidity, lack of education and lack of rational thinking. I must say that this fresco has another, political overtones. Its content is directed against the royalists and the clergy, who gained significant power after the defeat of the Spanish revolution.

"Pilgrimage to St. Isidore” Goya’s gloomy caricature of the life and customs of Spain in the early 19th century. A drunken, bawling crowd of commoners is clearly not seized by a religious feeling. For the participants of the pilgrimage, the feast of one of the most revered saints in Spain is just an excuse to drink and show off. However, the darkness that envelops the walking crowd and the frightened faces of the pilgrims give the picture a gloomy mood. To enhance the drama of what is happening, Goya placed the figure of a monk in the lower right corner of the fresco, who is watching the procession with bitterness and sorrow. "Pilgrimage to St. Isidore” one involuntarily wants to be compared with Goya’s other work, filled with light and joy, “The Feast on the Day of St. Isidore”, which he wrote forty-five years before the creation of the “black paintings”.

Frescoes on the second floor

In the room on the second floor there were eight piers suitable for painting, but Goya used only seven of them. To the right of the front door was the mysterious "Dog", on the long left wall "Atropos" or "Moira" and "Duel with clubs", on the opposite right - "Asmodeus" and "Inquisition Walk", on the wall opposite the entrance and to the left of the window were located "Readers", on the right - "Laughing Women".

The “Dog”, the strangest fresco that has given rise to many interpretations, is visually divided into two parts, upper and lower.

The upper light yellow part occupies the main space of the image, so viewers usually perceive it as a golden sky spread over brown quicksand, from which a dog is trying to get out. Her gaze, directed upwards to the mysterious dark area, seems to be an appeal to higher powers for help. It is possible that this is exactly how the artist felt in that difficult period for him: lonely, dying in the abyss of troubles and misfortunes that swept over him, but not losing hope for a miraculous salvation.

The painting located on the left wall, called "Atropos", is connected with the plot of ancient Greek mythology.

Atropos (Moira)

Goya depicted the goddesses of fate, Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos as ugly repulsive creatures floating in the air. In the center of the picture, surrounded by goddesses, is the figure of a man with his hands tied behind his back, which, apparently, means a person’s powerlessness before the blows of fate.

Next to the Atropos, "Battle of the Clubs" shows two men fighting to the death, who are deeply bogged down in the mud and, therefore, cannot leave the battlefield.

Judging by the fact that the men are very similar to each other, their battle symbolizes the civil war that raged at that time in Spain.

Occupying the first right wall of the "Asmodeus", probably the most difficult to explain work of all, written by the artist on the walls of the "House of the Deaf".

Two figures, male and female, are frozen in the air. Their faces are distorted with fear, their gestures express anxiety. Apparently, the characters of the fresco feel unprotected from the dangers that are fraught with the world that lies beneath them. The man extended his hand to a huge rock, on which the city with fortress walls is located. The woman looks in the opposite direction. Below, under the flying figures, French soldiers are visible, ready to conduct aimed fire, and a group of people with horses and wagons. Despite the frightening and extremely disturbing mood, the picture is incredibly beautiful, thanks to the golden background that fills it, with blue and silver splashes, on which there are two bright red objects that are not connected to each other.

The follow-up to Asmodea, The Walk of the Inquisition, has an obscure plot and may not have been finished.

The composition of the picture is broken: the viewer's attention is drawn to the lower right corner, in which there is a group of unsightly characters with a man in the robes of an inquisitor in the foreground. The rest is occupied by a gloomy mountain landscape with indistinct human figures. This painting has a second name - "Pilgrimage to the source of San Isidro" and is often confused with the painting located on the first floor, which has a similar name.

“Readers” and “Laughing Women” separated by a window are made in the same stylistic manner and complement each other compositionally.

The "Readers" shows a group of men who are listening with great attention to a man reading aloud a newspaper lying on his lap. Some researchers of Goya's work believe that these are politicians who are studying an article dedicated to them.

Laughing Women is a paraphrase of The Readers, where the attention of two laughing women is focused on a man who appears to be masturbating. What is the true meaning of this peculiar diptych? Probably, the artist wanted to show that political meetings, like masturbation, are a fruitless occupation, but a pleasure.

The mysteries associated with the "black paintings" are not limited to their mysterious content. There is an assumption, however, repeatedly refuted, that the author of the frescoes of Quinta del Sordo is not Goya, but his son Javier. The authors of this theory proceed from the fact that Goya's contemporaries did not know about the existence of "dark paintings" and had never seen them, and the first mention of frescoes appeared in print 40 years after the death of the artist. In addition, the "House of the Deaf", at the time when Goya lived in it, had only one floor, and the second was built after his departure to France. Therefore, the authorship of Goya cannot be considered indisputable.

Currently, the “black paintings”, transferred from the walls to canvas, are on display at the Prado Museum in Madrid. Despite the fact that the order of the paintings does not correspond to the "House of the Deaf" and the integrity of the composition is violated, their impact on the viewer has not decreased. The gloomy and frightening images created by the Spanish genius evoke strong and conflicting feelings, forcing one to admire the ugly, admire the ugly and enjoy the disgusting.

A brief description of Goya's paintings associated with dark forces, witches and the devil.

Bon Voyage

caprichos

Probably the largest work devoted to the theme of witchcraft and witches is the series of engravings caprichos. The etchings presented in it ridicule the political situation of the country, the social status and religious prejudices of the people.

hunting for teeth

great goat

Date of creation: 1798.
Type: fresco.

Coven

The magnificent painting is part of a series of six works commissioned by Goya for the Duke of Osun to decorate his estate near Madrid. The protagonist of the scene is the devil. He is represented in the form of a large goat, ready to accept two babies as a sacrifice. The work is considered satirical and critical of the superstitions of an uneducated society.

Flight of the Witches

Creation date: 1797.
Location: Prado.

Flight of the Witches

Another work for the Duke of Osun, like the Caprichos series, depicts scenes of witchcraft. Three hatted figures grabbed a naked man in the air. In addition to them, one can observe the poor fellow covering his ears and a running man in a white cloak, reproducing a gesture with his right hand designed to protect against the evil eye. This painting was acquired by the Prado Museum in 1999.

Conclusion

Francisco Goya, although he created many works on mystical themes, treated her with humor and distrust, probably seeing only interesting scenes and images in mysterious rituals and beliefs.

Witches of Goya updated: September 15, 2017 by: Gleb

The Witches of Goya Francisco Jose de Goya y Lucientes (Spanish Francisco Jose de Goya y Lucientes, March 30, 1746, Fuendetodes, near Zaragoza - April 16, 1828, Bordeaux) was a great Spanish artist and engraver. One of the brightest masters of the romantic direction and art.

1797. The painting, Flight of the Witches, depicts scenes of witchcraft. Three hatted figures grabbed a naked man in the air. In addition to them, one can observe the poor fellow covering his ears and a running man in a white cloak, reproducing a gesture with his right hand designed to protect against the evil eye. This painting was purchased by the Prado Museum in 1999.

Great goat, Creation date: 1798. Type: fresco. One of the images included in the "Gloom Pictures" series. The canvas was painted in the most difficult period of the artist's life, when he began to lose his hearing and suffer from monstrous visions that haunted him in his sleep and in reality. He transferred these incredible hallucinations to the walls of his own house. The Witches' Sabbath was located along the wall of the room and, with its incredible surrealism and gloomy coloring, drove everyone entering the room into a stupor. Only the genius of Goya could cope with such a large-scale canvas. Disproportionate, frankly ugly figures with ugly faces are collected in a multitude in this picture. The composition is built on the basis of an oval, which creates a feeling of continuous rotation of this dark, disgusting mass. This is a reflection of the ideas of a broken, sick artist about the world around him. Political instability, fear for one's own life, a serious illness gave rise to depression, which resulted in a series of paintings that amaze with their gloomy perception and expression of the image. In an effort to depict all human vices and satanic manifestations, Goya makes the appearance of witches distorted and disgusting. This is the embodiment of universal evil in human likeness, an artistic reflection of the sick inner world of the artist. There is not a hint of Goya's early work left in this canvas. There are no bright colors, no gentle pretty faces of his charming Spaniards. Only dark, dead colors, a complete lack of beauty and a tense, unnatural cycle of various forms of evil. And after many years, The Great Goat impresses with its expression and dark, negative expressiveness. Francisco de Goya. Painting on the wall of the House of the Deaf. 1819 - 1823. To date, the fresco with some damage has been transferred to the canvas and placed in the Prado Museum (Madrid). Canvas, oil. 140 x 438 cm

Painting, Witches' Sabbath, Date of creation: 1797-1798. Location: Lazaro Galdiano Museum. The magnificent painting is part of a series of six works commissioned by Goya for the Duke of Osun to decorate his estate near Madrid. The protagonist of the scene is the devil. He is represented in the form of a large goat, ready to accept two babies as a sacrifice. The work is considered satirical and critical of the superstitions of an uneducated society. Francisco Goya, although he created many works on mystical themes, treated her with humor and distrust, probably seeing only interesting scenes and images in mysterious rituals and beliefs.

Painting "Good luck!" (Series "Caprichos"). Date of creation 1799. Biography: The famous painter Francisco de Goya was born on March 30, 1746 in Fuendetodos, Spain. He began his art studies as a teenager and even spent some time in Rome to further his skills. In the 1770s, Goya worked in the Spanish royal court. In addition to commissioning portraits of the nobility, he created works that criticized the social and political problems of his era. The son of a guilder, Goya spent part of his youth in Zaragoza. There he began painting at the age of about fourteen. He was a student of Jose Martinez Luzan. He copied the works of the great masters, finding inspiration in the work of artists such as Diego Rodriguez de Silva Velazquez and Rembrandt van Rijn. Goya later moved to Madrid where he began working with the brothers Francisco and Ramon Bayeu y Subías in their studio. He sought to continue his artistic education in 1770 or 1771 by traveling through Italy. In Rome, Goya studied the classics and worked there. He submitted the painting to a competition held by the Academy of Fine Arts in the city of Parma. While the judges liked his work, he failed to win the top prize. Through the German artist Anton Raphael Mengs, Goya began to create works for the royal family of Spain. He first drew caricatures of tapestries, which served as models in a factory in Madrid. These works featured scenes from everyday life such as "The Umbrella" (1777) and "The Pottery Maker" (1779). In 1779, Goya was appointed as a painter to the royal court. He continued to rise in stature, gaining admission to the Royal Academy of San Fernando the following year. Over time, Goya built up a reputation as a portrait painter. The work The Duke and Duchess of Osuna and their children (1787-1788) illustrates this perfectly. He skillfully painted the smallest elements of their faces and clothes. In 1792, Goya became completely deaf, after suffering from an unknown illness. His style has changed somewhat. Continuing to develop professionally, Goya was appointed director of the Royal Academy in 1795, but he never forgot the plight of the Spanish people, and reflected this in his work. Goya created a series of photographs called "Caprichos" in 1799. Even in his official work, researchers believe, he took a critical look at his subjects. He painted a portrait of the family of King Charles IV around 1800, which remains one of his most famous works. The political situation in the country subsequently became so tense that Goya voluntarily went into exile in 1824. Despite his poor health, he thought he would be safer outside of Spain. Goya moved to Bordeaux where he spent the rest of his life. Here he continued to write. Some of his later works are portraits of friends and life in exile. The artist died on April 16, 1828 in Bordeaux, France.