Boca del Calvari Museum opens the exhibition 'Goya's Women' with 83 original prints by the painter

 Boca del Calvari Museum has been showing the exhibition "Goya's Women" since yesterday, open until June 22nd. It is an exhibition composed of 83 original prints by the Aragonese painter. According to Ana Pellicer, Councilor for Historical and Cultural Heritage, during the opening, "he presents women and the role they played powerfully." The councillor added that "this exhibition is an opportunity to enjoy the talent and genius of one of our most universal artists through his characteristic prints." Here, the Aragonese artist "portrays social situations of his time in which women take centre stage."

The exhibition is curated by María Toral, who explained that Goya is "the most contemporary artist of our time, a great connoisseur of the human soul, and he conveyed this to painting and paper." Toral explained that the painter “expressed himself more freely in his prints” and specified that in the series “Los Caprichos” “the women of the period are visible.”

In another of the series on display, “The Disasters of War,” Goya recorded the war. “These works offer less freedom because they were commissioned, but Goya was a direct witness to what was happening and denounced the brutality of the conflict,” Toral noted. These scenes also appear in Boca del Calvari exhibition, which also showcases “brave women like Agustina de Aragón and other weaker and humbler ones, as well as the consequences of the war on women.” The exhibition also includes prints from the series “Proverbs and Nonsense,” with works that are “more dreamlike and represent a precursor to what would become Surrealism.”

The last series, "La Tauromaquia," "was a sales failure" because it portrayed it "as a violent celebration, and that didn't appeal." That series of 40 works includes one of a female bullfighter from 1814. "Goya shows us that women already existed in his time and speaks to us about the value of women. He is a proto-feminist Goya," opined María Toral.

Before visiting the exhibition, Mayor Toni Pérez recalled that the Museum "is celebrating its tenth anniversary, and this exhibition is confirmation that during this time it has had and continues to have such attractive exhibitions that can be seen in very few places." Pérez emphasized that "we have 83 original works by Goya that we are going to enjoy" and praised the Museum for celebrating its first decade "with a bang" with an exhibition "for women, for their freedom, and for their autonomy."