Join Frederick Ilchman, chair of the Art of Europe at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, as he explores Francisco Goya’s extraordinary achievements in portraiture. This lecture highlights The Huntington’s newly acquired “Portrait of José Antonio Caballero” (1807) and delves into Goya’s masterful portrayal of society.
Francisco Goya (1746–1828) is best known today for his political and satirical paintings and prints, including his famous series of the Caprichos and The Disasters of War. In the years around 1800, Goya was also the leading society portraitist in Madrid. Despite having lost his hearing and facing many other pressures, he produced portraits of the highest caliber, depicting a wide variety of sitters and presenting them with an arresting immediacy. In 2023, The Huntington acquired one of the finest Goya portraits in private hands, Portrait of José Antonio Caballero (1807).
This is the Robert Wark Lecture in Art History.
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (Spanish, 1746–1828). Portrait of José Antonio Caballero, Second Marqués de Caballero, Secretary of Grace and Justice, 1807. Oil on canvas, canvas: 41 5/16 × 33 1/8 in. (105 × 84.1 cm), frame: 53 1/16 × 44 7/8 × 3 1/2 in. (134.8 × 114 × 8.9 cm). Gift of The Ahmanson Foundation. | The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens.