Francisco de Goya

(1746-1828) A forerunner to the artistic avant-garde of the 20th century, the great Spanish painter and engraver marked the beginning of modern painting by anticipating every artistic movement that would later emerge in Europe. As a consequence, he is considered to be one of the great masters of the history of art. Goya’s work represents a spectacular portrayal of the evolution, ages and characteristics of Spanish life and history. In his final years, Goya became hermit-like and solitary, though it was during this period that he created his finest works, like the visionary Black Paintings.

An exclusive work created to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the War of Independence, a conflict that one of the greatest painters of the age, Francisco de Goya, depicted in his series Desastres de la Guerra (Disasters of War). A critical spectator of the age and of the war, Goya made a series of engravings in which he reflected his most profound thoughts.

ARTIKA, in conjunction with the Fuendetodos Museum of Engraving, is publishing Goya’s most emblematic graphic work in a single, limited edition of 2,998 numbered copies.

Presented in a velvet-lined tray, the facsimile reproductions of 80 prints, printed both front and back, are the central feature of Desastres de la Guerra, in which the artist turns the reader into a participant of the events that he witnessed at first-hand.

Life in wartime Spain is reflected in the selection of texts from the book Testigos de una época (Witnesses of an age), which includes letters, proclamations, songs and advertisements from those times.

In the Study Book, specialists on Goya’s engravings write on the graphic work itself and the author, analysing the prints, the methods used and the preparatory drawings, and explaining the artist’s creative process.

As a final touch, the work includes a bronze plate embossed with Goya’s signature, as a small homage to the basic material the artist used for his engraving plates.

All the elements in this unique piece come in a handmade box, lined with cotton cloth and with a self-portrait of the artist printed inside the box and an enlargement of his signature on the exterior.

At the height of his maturity, a genius who was disillusioned with the age he lived in suddenly gave up his work as a court painter and went off in search of new visual languages with which to broaden and explore his skills. This introspective stage of the painter’s life is reflected in various series of prints, one of which was Tauromaquia (Bullfighting).

Artika and the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts have produced a limited edition of 998 numbered copies featuring the facsimile reproduction of the 40 prints Francisco de Goya produced for his Tauromaquia, and taken from the first edition that is conserved in the National Chalcography department.

The prints are masterly depictions of the ritual of bullfighting, with lines and strokes full of strength and character. They are protected in a folder that replicates the original folder in which Goya himself bound the first edition of Tauromaquia.

This large-format volume affords a painstaking study of the prints, as well as evoking the life and work of the painter, the history of his work Tauromaquia and his work as an engraver, all described by leading Goya specialists.

Bound in red, El Arte de Torear contains texts on the subject by writers who were contemporaries of the artist. And to top it all off, the work includes an artisan’s graver, just like the one Goya used.

Given the importance and value of this work, it is presented in a specially-designed handmade box that features the signature of Goya the engraver. It also has an original copper clasp reminiscent of the engraving plates used for this art form, with the title of the work engraved on it, as a homage to the great maestro.

Caprichos is considered to be one of Francisco de Goya’s finest creations as an engraver, and one of the works that became a landmark in the history of Spanish art.

Artika, in conjunction with the University of Zaragoza, presents a unique, unrepeatable work that features facsimile reproductions of the 80 prints from the first edition of Goya’s Caprichos.

These were a collection of satirical engravings criticising the decadence of late 18th-century Spain and which, according to the experts, were partly a result of the artist’s own personal situation (poor health, heartbreak, political tensions and war).

The 80 prints, divided into two parts (the first part satirical, the second critical) have been reproduced with care so as to conserve all the details of the originals. Since the first edition that was used for making the prints was in an excellent state of conservation, the finished result is just as high in quality as the ones Goya produced in his own printing process.

This edition comes in a box that is hand-made and hand-lined, while the prints are protected by a unique folder that is a reproduction of the original one. There is also a Study Book, bound in black silk and embossed, which helps the reader to find out more about Goya the man, his work and his age.

A unique view of a historical period through the eyes of a grand maestro.