Construction; page 46, from "Images of Spain" Album (F)

Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) Spanish

Not on view

The great project shown rising in the background of this drawing might be the Madrid Opera House or the column in Buen Retiro Park, both of which were under construction by 1819. But as in so much of Goya’s work, events and locations provided an opportunity to explore freely; ostensible realism was a vehicle for delving into other concerns. This drawing might relate to page 45 from the album (35.103.30) of a radiant woman, which has been interpreted as an allegory of constitutional Spain attacked by authoritarian forces. In that context, perhaps the present sheet refers to rebuilding a democratic system through common endeavor.

Construction; page 46, from "Images of Spain" Album (F), Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) (Spanish, Fuendetodos 1746–1828 Bordeaux), Brush and gray-brown and irongall wash, with scraping on laid paper

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