Plate 20 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la Guerra): 'Get them well, and on to the next' (Curarlos y á otra) (1810 (published 1863))
Original title: Plate 20 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la Guerra): 'Get them well, and on to the next' (Curarlos y á otra)
kurzbeschreibung
Francisco de Goya made this etching as the twentieth plate in his series 'Los Desastres de la Guerra'. He created it in 1810, though it was not printed until 1863. The technique combines etching with lavis, burin, and burnisher. The image presents a group of people tending to a wounded man lying on the ground.
Description
Several figures have gathered around a fallen man; some stand, others lean toward him. Trees and rocks form the setting. The layout draws the eye to the middle, where the injured man and those around him are placed. Black and white dominate the sheet, and the light feels muted, deepening the somber mood. The clothing of the figures points to a past era.
Context
Between 1810 and 1820, Goya produced his series 'The Disasters of War', a response to the Napoleonic Wars and the Spanish War of Independence. Only in 1863, many years after the artist's death, did the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid publish the plates. This particular print bears the title 'Curarlos y á otra' and deals with the care of wounded under wartime conditions.
Impact
The subdued atmosphere and the central arrangement pull the viewer's gaze straight to the wounded man's suffering. Sharp, realistic contours heighten the drama and create a haunting, oppressive effect.
Technique
Goya worked here with etching, which he supplemented with lavis, an ink technique, and the burin. The burnisher was used to rework specific areas. The interplay of these methods produces delicate transitions between light and shadow that contribute to the print's gloomy mood.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)