Francisco Goya’s vision of war is powerful and urgent
Bleak yet compassionate, his art feels as contemporary as ever
The line of drably uniformed infantrymen, rifles aimed, forms a forceful diagonal across the right side of the painting, a machine of terror. Their target is a terrified rebel in a white shirt, his arms flung upwards in vulnerability and defiance, imitating Christ on the cross. His comrades cover their faces. Several already lie inert on the ground in pools of blood.
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “Heart of darkness”
From the December 24th 2022 edition
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