Soldiers Frightened by a Phantom, from Disparates, published as plate 2 in Los Proverbios
1816–19, published 1864
Medium
Etching and burnished aquatint in brown-black on ivory wove paper
Dimensions
Image: 21.9 × 31.9 cm (8 5/8 × 12 9/16 in.); Plate: 24.5 × 35.2 cm (9 11/16 × 13 7/8 in.); Sheet: 33.2 × 49.7 cm (13 1/8 × 19 5/8 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
44895
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This nightmarish image is a conundrum. Soldiers cowering before a towering specter can be interpreted as representing the fear of death or defeat, illustrating the vulnerability of fighters during a time of war. Upon a closer look, one can see a smirking face emerging from the phantom’s sleeve, indicating that the colossal apparition may actually be a hoax. With characteristic irony, Goya mocks meaningless superstitions and irrational fears.
About the Artist
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes · 1746–1828
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was born on March 30, 1746, in the small Aragonese village of Fuendetodos, Spain, to José Benito de Goya, a master gilder, and Gracia de Lucientes. The fourth of six children in a modest lower-middle-class family, Goya received a basic education before beginning his artistic training at age 14 under the local painter José Luzán y Martínez in Zaragoza, where he sp...