by Tim McNeese
down in a small house with a garden. His friend Leocadia
Weissandherdaughter,Rosario,cametojoinhim.Theartist
wasnotfinishedwithhiswork,however,andbeganonceagain
134 FRANCISCO GOyA
applyinghimselftothenewprintingtechniqueoflithography.
Tothisend,heproducedfourfamouslithographicplatestitled
the Bulls of Bordeaux.Theworkswerealmostexperimentalfor
Goya,whonotonlyappliedthenewprintingtechniquetohis
work but produced the end results using “crayons, a razor,
and a scraper to achieve highly original effects of form and
color.”120
Life in Bordeaux did bring Goya the desired release and
escape from a world he had come to nearly despise in his
oldage.Hehadcompletefreedom,paintingaportraitofhis
friend Moratin and otherwise enjoying life. Moratin would
laterwriteoftheelderlySpanishmaster:“Helikesthecity,the
countryside,theclimate,thefood,andtheindependenceand
tranquilitywhichhecanenjoy.”121 Hewasenjoyinghistime
withyoungRosario,now10yearsold,whowastotheartist
hisgreatestdelight.Sheseemstohavehadsometalentasan
artist. She and Goya drew together and painted miniatures,
a new artistic outlet for the aged Aragonese painter. From
time to time, Goya became ill during his stay at Bordeaux,
andMoratinthoughthemightdie.Goyawasdiagnosedwith
paralysis of the bladder. He developed a large tumor on the
boneofoneofhislegs.
In 1826, when Goya turned 80, he made a visit to his
native Spain where he paid a call in Madrid. He probably
visitedwithhisson,Xavier,andhisgrandsonwhilethere,but
hemadethetriptorenewhisofficialpermissionstoremain
inFranceaswellasrequestretirementasCourtPainter.In
the great Spanish city that had spurred so much of Goya’s
artthroughoutthedecades,thecourtpainterwhohadsuc-
ceeded him, Vicente Lopez, painted Goya’s portrait. The
work was commissioned by King Ferdinand himself, who
treated Goya with kindness and respect. The king not only
renewedhispermissionfortheartisttoremaininBordeaux,
healsograntedhimapensionof50,000realesayear.When
GoyafinallyleftMadridtoreturntoFrance,itwouldnotbe
hislast.Hewouldreturnagaininsummer1827,thelasttime
House of the Deaf Man 135
hewouldseehishomeland.Thereasonforthatfinalvisitis
unknown.
tHe eND OF His DaYs
The last years of Goya’s life were spent peacefully and lei-
surely. Following his visit to Madrid, Moratin wrote about
howhisfriendwasdoing:“Goyaisfine.Hekeepsbusywith
hissketches,hewalks,eats,takeshissiestas;itseemsthatright
nowpeacereignsoverhishearth.”122 Hedrewawidevarietyof
sketches,includingseveralbasedonhisvisittotheBordeaux
insane asylum. He produced, even as his life approached its
end,yetanothergreatmasterpiece, The Milkmaid of Bordeaux.
The work became rumored as his last painting, even though
itwasnotso.PerhapshissubjectwasactuallyRosario,butno
onereallyknows.ThepaintingsymbolizesGoya’sfinalyears.
Itisasimplepaintingofasimpleyoungwoman.Sheislovely
andinnocent,glancingpensivelyawayfromtheviewer.Goya
createswiththisworkanunclutteredandsmallcanvas.There
isnothingbutthemilkmaid—nomilkpail,noanimals,and
no landscape—who presents to the viewer no allegory, no
mystery,nosymbolism,nooveradornedroyalty,nopolitical
essay,nosatireonhumandepravity,andnostoryworthtell-
ing,excepttoGoya.
The year 1828 would be Goya’s last. In February, he
requestedhisgrandson,Mariano,alongwithhiswife,topay
himavisitinBordeaux.Theyarrivedthefollowingmonth.In
aletterMarianowrotetohisfather,GrandfatherGoyaadded
a few lines of his own: “I can only say that I have become a
littleindisposedwithsomuchhappiness,andaminbed.God
grantthatImayseeyoucometoseethem[hisfamily],forthat
wouldmakemypleasurecomplete.”123
XaviermadethetriptoBordeaux,buthedawdled,spend-
ing too much time in Paris, and he arrived too late. On the
morningofApril2,theagedartistwokeup,discoveringthat
in his sleep he had lost the ability to speak and that his side
hadbecomeparalyzed.Inthedaysthatfollowed,heregained
136 FRANCISCO GOyA
hisspeech,buthisparalysisdidnotleavehim.Fornearlytwo
weeks,hestruggled.InaletterwrittenlaterbyDonaLeocadia
to Goya’s friend in Bordeaux, Moratin, she described the
artist’send:
Thushewasfor13days....Hewouldlookathishand,but
asifstupefied;hewantedtomakeawill,hesaid,inourfavor,
andhisdaughter-in-lawrepliedthathealreadyhad.Afterthat
hewasnotoutofdangerforamoment...weaknessimpeded
thelimitedunderstandingofwhathesaid,andherambled...
hediedatabout2inthemorningonthenightofthe15th–16th
...soserenely,anddepartedasoneasleep;eventhedoctorwas
astonishedathiscourage;hesaidhedidnotsufferatall,butI
amnotsosureofthat!124
tHe aFtermatH OF GOYa’s DeatH
Following a stroke on April 2, 1828, Goya managed to live two
more weeks until he died on April 16. Through those weeks, he
fell into a coma and was speechless and unresponsive. A hand-
ful of people waited at his bedside, including his companion,
Dona Leocadia.
The distribution of Goya’s estate was important. There were
many paintings and sketches in his collection and his estate.
The vast majority of his property and belongings went to Xavier. A
small portion went to his friend Mariano. All this was distributed
under a will that Goya had written up in 1811. The will was writ-
ten so that it could not be changed, meaning that his companion
for more than a decade, Dona Leocadia, was left nothing.
Xavier did give Dona Leocadia something, despite his strong
personal dislike for her. She was allowed to take some of Goya’s
furniture, household linens, and clothing. She was also offered
1,000 francs to help cover the costs of returning to Spain with
her daughter. Xavier did not allow her to remain in the house
where Goya died.
House of the Deaf Man 137
WiththepassingofGoya,theworldofWesternartfound
itselfinthethroesofchange,muchofwhichhadbeenbrought
onbythelife’sworkoftheSpanishartisthimself.Allthings
neoclassicalorbaroquehadlongagovanishedfromtheartis-
ticlandscapeofEurope.Theywerereplacedbyanadvancing
tideofromanticism,towhichGoyahadbeenoneofitsmost
long, full life as an artist may well be an understatement, of
course.ThatGoyahadseenmuchtragedy,painandsuffering
isclear.Hehadwitnessedeventstoogrotesque,toogruesome,
andtoodarkformostartiststoeventrytocaptureoncanvas,
buttheSpanishartisthadapproacheditallunflinchingly,hav-
ingmanagedto,inthewordsofthepoetBaudelaire,capture
“theblackmagicofourcivilization.”125
Xavier gave Dona Leocadia a single painting, Milkmaid of
Bordeaux. The work may have been based on a portrait of her
daughter, Rosario. yet Dona Leocadia did not keep the painting
for long. By the following year, living in poverty, she was driven
to sell the work to a distant relative of Goya’s, Juan Bautista
de Muguiro.
Goya’s body would not remain in France. By 1901, the
Spanish government made an official request to have Goya’s
body removed and given to Spain for reburial in his homeland.
Permission was granted, and, before year’s end, the remains
were sent to Madrid and reburied.
The story does not end there, however. In 1929, officials
decided to have Goya reburied again, this time beneath the
floor of the Church of Santa Maia de la Florida, where Goya
had painted his lovely angelic frescoes. During the exhumation,
Goya’s century-old body was examined and found to be missing
its skull. No one has ever explained the reason for the artist’s
missing head.
Chronology
1746 FranciscoGoyabornMarch30inFuendetodosnear
Saragossa,Spain.
1763 ArrivesinMadrid.
1770 MakestriptoItalytoseegreatRenaissanceworks.
Receiveshonorablementioninartcompetitionheldby
theAcademyofFineArtsinParma.
1771 ReturnstoSaragossaandreceivescommissionsfor
aseriesofworksfortheSobradielPalace’schapelin
Saragossa.
1773 MarriesJosefaBayeu,sisterofthesuccessfulpainterand
influenceonGoya,FranciscoBayeu.Paintsfrescoesfor
theCharterhouseofAulaDeiwhileinSaragossa.
1774 CommissionedbytheRoyalTapestryFactoryofSanta
Barbaratoproducedesignsfortapestryproductions.
LivinginMadrid.
1746
Francisco
1773
Goya born
Marries
1786
March 30 in
Josefa Bayeu
appointed
Fuendetodos
painter to
near
the King
saragossa,
spain
1746
1786
1774
commissioned
by the royal
1780
Tapestry Factory
Unanimously
of santa Barbara
elected to mem-
1763
to produce
bership of the
arrives in
designs for tap-
royal academy
Madrid
estry productions
of Fine arts in
san Fernando
138
Chronology 139
1780 UnanimouslyelectedtomembershipoftheRoyal
AcademyofFineArtsinSanFernando.
1783 CommissionedbySpanishroyalminister,countof
Floridablanca,topainthisportrait.Paintsadditional
aristocraticportraits,includingthedukeandduchess
ofOsuna.
1784 FranciscoXavierisborn,theonlychildwhowillsurvive
intoadulthood.
1786 AppointedPaintertotheKingandreceivesanannual
salaryof15,000reales.
1789 AyearfollowingthedeathofCarlosIII, isappointed
CourtPainterbyCarlosIV.Revolutionbreaksoutin
France.
1792 Goesdeaf.Producesthelastofhistapestrycartoons.
ManuelGodoybecomesprimeminister.
1789
appointed
court painter
1799
by carlos iV
publishes
The Caprices,
1828
a collection
Dies on april 16
of 80 dark
and is buried in
etchings
France
1789
1828
1814
paints two great
1795
works to com-
appointed Director
memorate spanish
of the royal
uprising against
academy. paints
1812
the French, The
famous portrait,
Wife,
Second of May
The Duchess
Josefa, dies
1808 and The
of Alba
Third of May 1808
140 Chronology
1793 AtworkinMadrid,whileinFrance,LouisXVIis
beheadedbyFrenchrevolutionaries.Francedeclares
waronSpain.
1795 AppointedDirectoroftheRoyalAcademy.Paints
famousportrait, The Duchess of Alba.
1796–1797 VisitsthenewlywidowedduchessofAlbaatherestate
inAndalusia.There,hepaintsanotherportraitofher
wearingblackandbeginsworkon The Caprices.
1798 PaintsportraitoftheministerJovellanosaswellas
frescoesforthechapelofSanAntoniodelaFlorida.
1799 Publishes The Caprices,acollectionof80darketchings.
AppointedFirstCourtPainterwithanannualsalaryof
50,000reales.NapoleoncomestopowerinFrance.
1800 Afterlongpreparationsandsketches,paintsthefamily
ofCarlosIV.
1802 DuchessofAlbadiessuddenly.
1804 NapoleoncrownshimselfemperorofFrance.
1806 Mariano,Goya’sgrandsonisborn.
1807 TheFrenchinvadeSpain.
1808 PrimeMinisterGodoyisremovedfromoffice,and
CarlosIVisforcedtoabdicatehisthrone.Hisson,
FerdinandVII,isalsoforcedtoresignandgoesinto
exile.OnMay2and3,streetdemonstrationsandriots
inMadridaredealtwithharshlybytheFrench.
1810 Beginsworkonaseriesofetchingslatertitled The
Disasters of War.PaintsportraitofJosephBonaparte,
whohasbeenplacedonthethroneofSpainbyhis
brother.
1812 Wife,Josefa,dies.
1814 WarwithFranceendswiththeabdicationofNapoleon.
KingFerdinandreturnstotheSpanishthrone.Paints
twogreatworkstocommemoratetheconflict, The
Second of May 1808and The Third of May 1808.
Chronology 141
1816 Publishescollectionofbullfightingaquatints.
1819 Buysahouse,theQuintadelSordo.Struggleswith
numerousillnesses.
1820–1823 Secretlydecoratesthewallsoftworoomsinhishouse
withthe“blackpaintings.”
1824 GrantedpermissiontomovetoFrancewherehetakes
upresidenceinBordeaux.
1826 ReturnstoMadridbrieflyandduringhisvisit,
KingFerdinandVIIgrantshimanannualpensionof
50,000reales.
1827 VisitsSpainonelasttime.AfterreturningtoBordeaux,
hepaints The Milkmaid of Bordeaux.
1828 DiesonApril16andisburiedinFrance.
Notes
Introduction
Chapter 3
1.QuotedinRobertHughes,
33.Ibid.,38.
Goya(NewYork:AlfredA.
34.Virch,8.
Knopf,2003),261.
35.Schickel,39.
2.Ibid.
3.Ibid.,248.
Chapter 4
4.Ibid.,253.
36.Ibid.,49.
5.Ibid.,254.
37.Ibid.,50.
6.Ibid.
38.Ibid.,51.
39.Ibid.
Chapter 1
40.QuotedinJanisTomlinson,
7.QuotedinEvanS.Connell,
Francisco Goya y Lucientes, 1746-
Francisco Goya: Life and Times
1828(London:PhaidonPress,
(NewYork:Counterpoint
Ltd.,1994),25.
Publishers,2004),6.
41.Virch,12.
8.Ibid.
42.Tomlinson,27.
9.QuotedinRichardSchickel,
43.Ibid.
The World of Goya, 1746–1828
44.Ibid.
(NewYork:Time-LifeBooks,
45.Ibid.,16.
1968),13.
46.Schickel,55.
10.Ibid.
47.Ibid.,51.
11.Ibid.
12.Connell,7.
Chapter 5
13.Schickel,9.
48.Ibid.,55.
14.Connell,7.
49.Ibid.
15.Schickel,11.
50.Ibid.,56.
16.Ibid.,13.
51.Ibid.
17.Ibid.,14.
52.Ibid.,57.
18.Ibid.
53.Ibid.,50.
19.Ibid.
54.Ibid.
20.Connell,13.
55.Ibid.,57.
56.Ibid.
Chapter 2
57.Ibid.,58.
21.Ibid.,14.
58.Ibid.
22.Ibid.
59.Ibid.
23.QuotedinClausVirch,
60.QuotedinJeannineBaticle,