In his Disasters of War series, Goya strays from his elegant portraits of the Spanish royal court. Here, he depicts the deeply emotional and disturbing reality of the horrors wrought by the Peninsular War (1808-1814). Goya’s 82-print series was not published until 1863, 35 years after the artist’s death for fear of political backlash. Allegory features prominently in Goya’s work, evident in Si Resucitara? The woman at the center, serene in death as brilliant light radiates from her, represents Truth. Surrounding her in the shadows is a crowd of onlookers, with a disfigured clergyman and monk attacking her corpse. Sorrowful citizens with their mouths gagged pray for her return. Goya’s views are evident in this powerful critique of European politics and religion during the early 17th century.
