The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters: Plate 43 of The Caprices (Los Caprichos), 1799
Francisco de Goya y Lucientes (Spanish, 1746–1828)
Etching, aquatint, drypoint, and burin
Artist Biography
Technical Glossary
Francisco de Goya y Lucientes (Spanish, 1746–1828)
Etching, aquatint, drypoint, and burin
Image: 8 7/16 x 5 7/8 in. (21.5 x 15 cm)
Gift of M. Knoedler & Co., 1918 (18.64)
In the etching that might have served as the frontispiece to his suite of satires, Los Caprichos, Goya imagined himself asleep amid his drawing tools, his reason dulled by sleep and bedeviled by creatures that prowl in the dark. The artist's nightmare reflected his view of Spanish society, which he portrayed as demented, corrupt, and ripe for ridicule.
