Francisco Goya

The third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya 

This was painted when french forces invaded Spain in 1808 - the peninsular war. Francisco was considered one of the most important artists in Spain in the late 18th centuries. He suffered a severe illness which left him completely deaf and any work he produced after this period became very dark and pessimistic. I started to look at Goya's work because he is not only a painter but a printmaker as well and that fits perfectly with the subject I'm looking at (visual communication). He produced a series of prints "disasters of war" after the peninsular war that I think really show how deeply he was affected by it.  During the war he actually kept far away from involvement with the war.