Art·Museo del Prado, Madrid·Aug 29, 2026
Goya's Black Paintings, Up Close
In a dim room at the Prado, fourteen murals once painted on the walls of a farmhouse still unsettle everyone who stands before them.
6 min read
The Black Paintings were never meant to be seen. Goya painted them directly onto the plaster walls of his farmhouse, old, deaf and disillusioned.
Moved to canvas and hung together in a low-lit room, they still feel private — like reading someone's diary over their shoulder.
Step back into the bright galleries afterwards and the court portraits look almost naive.