The Disasters of War
"The Disasters of War" is the second of Goya's four major print series, which constitute almost all of his most important work in the medium. He also created 35 prints early in his career—many of which are reproductions of his portraits and other works—and about 16 lithographs while living in France. His first series, the 80-plate "Caprichos", were completed between 1797 and 1799 to document "the innumerable foibles and follies to be found in any civilized society, and ... the common prejudices and deceitful practices which custom, ignorance, or self-interest have made usual." "Caprichos" was put on sale in 1799, but was almost immediately withdrawn after threats from the Inquisition. In "The Disasters of War"s first two groups of prints, Goya largely departs from the imaginative, synthetic approach of "Caprichos" to realistically depict life-and-death scenes of war. In the last group, the "Caprichos" sense of the fantastic returns.