They carried her off! (Que se la llevaron!)
Original title: Plate 8 from "Los Caprichos": They carried her off! (Que se la llevaron!)
kurzbeschreibung
From 1799 comes the eighth plate in Francisco de Goya's eighty-part series Los Caprichos. This etching with aquatint presents two figures in a turbulent moment: one has fallen, the other struggles to hold her. The image belongs to Goya's biting critique of superstition and social ills.
Description
Two figures in white, violently moving garments appear in a tense, dramatic pose: the one in front seems to be falling, the one behind tries to support or carry her away. A dark, undefined background surrounds them, isolating the action and intensifying its force. At the bottom, in Latin letters, one reads 'Que se la llevaron!'. Shades of gray dominate the palette, while light sets the bodies off in strong contrast.
Context
As part of the 80-plate series Los Caprichos, this etching was made in 1799, with which Goya denounced Spanish society of his time. The plate belongs to a group that deals with violence against women and their powerlessness in society. In the same year, Goya published the series but soon withdrew it from sale, probably out of fear of the Inquisition.
Impact
The gloomy, almost monochrome design and the unclear space evoke a threatening, oppressive atmosphere. The movement of the garments and the falling figure create an immediate dynamism that draws the viewer into the event. The image appears like a halted moment of a violent assault, without showing faces, which underscores the anonymity of the act.
Technique
For fine tonal gradations and soft transitions, Goya used etching with burnished aquatint. In places, the aquatint was burnished away to emphasize light areas such as the garments. The plate measures 21.4 × 15 cm within the plate mark and was printed on a larger sheet (29.5 × 21 cm).
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)