Hundene pudses på tyren 1815 - 1816

Editor: This is "Hundene pudses på tyren," or "Dogs set on a Bull", an etching and engraving by Francisco Goya, created between 1815 and 1816. It’s… intense. There’s a real sense of movement and violence. How do you interpret this work within the context of its time? Curator: Considering Goya's position, the power dynamics interest me here. Bullfighting, traditionally an aristocratic pursuit, shifted dramatically during and after the Peninsular War. It became a crucial expression of Spanish identity and resistance. Do you think Goya is romanticizing or critiquing that shift here? Editor: I’m not sure! The dogs seem so… vulnerable, but also aggressive. Maybe there’s an element of both? Acknowledging the cultural significance while also showing the brutal reality? Curator: Precisely. Look at the crowd in the background, their almost ghost-like quality, set against the stark action in the foreground. Goya was deeply critical of established authority. Might this portrayal be a commentary on the masses fueling the spectacle, almost complicit in the violence for entertainment or even some illusion of power? How does the setting, the bullring, contribute to the politics you see? Editor: It feels… contained. Almost like all this violence is sanctioned, regulated even. Curator: Exactly. Bullfighting's popularization provided new roles of celebrity and avenues for public expression. Remember how these arenas themselves became spaces to signal new political and social changes, too? How is this different from aristocratic jousting? Editor: Wow, I hadn't thought about that! It really opens up the artwork to broader ideas about public life and cultural identity. Curator: Indeed. And it’s crucial to think about how the politics of imagery is still active today when interpreting history paintings. Editor: I will never look at bullfighting the same way. This makes me realize how deeply entangled art and politics are.