Thursday, November 19, 2009

Saturn Devouring His Son




Francisco de Goya was a Spanish painter and printmaker regarded as the last of the Old masters and the first of the moderns. My favorite work from him is "Saturn devouring his son" painted between 1819 and 1823 in the walls of his house. This painting belongs to Goya's series of The Black Paintings and it depicts the Greek myth of Cronus, who feared his son to overthrow him and therefore ate him once he was born. This artwork was conceived when Goya's mentality was one of concerned of his own mortality and the artist was increasingly embittered by the civil strife occurring in Spain.This work was one of six that decorated his dining room. After Goya's death, the work was transferred to a canvas and nowadays,it is in exhibition in the Museo Del Prado in Madrid.

2 comments:

  1. I have seen this painting in person in Madrid,Spain. It is by far the scariest most disturbing thing you will ever see. Seeing it on screen does not quite do it justice. Maybe because I am catholic and the whole point of the piece strikes me personally, but it is scary and if anyone wants nightmares for the next four years, please head over to the Prado. Great post though :o)

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  2. p.s. the catholic comment might not make sense to some people, but some aspects between greek mythology and our beliefs are oddly similar. Please don't assume I'm dumb for saying that.

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