The life of geniuses, whose talents seem to be bestowed by higher powers and are able to influence the minds of several generations ahead, is for us in many ways unclear and mysterious. How are these cutting-edge ideas and thoughts born? How are centuries-old masterpieces created that still make our hearts tremble and our souls renew? In the novel of the German writer Feuchtwanger, “Goya, or the Hard Way of Knowledge”, this curtain of the secret life of a person just opens, which had a tangible effect on both contemporaries and descendants.
History or fiction?
The work is based on the real events of the 18th century and the people who at that time decided the fate of the state. Political intrigues, manipulations and games, luxury with the threat of opals, lovers and passion - all these are integral components of the reign of the King of Spain, Charles IV and Queen Marie-Louise. At the center of this confusion, at the intersection of the interests of the nobility, the church and the working peasants, he is, Goya - the undoubted talent of his century, a recognized genius.
Through the prism of his art, he dared to expose vices and whims, while creating both attractive and disgusting works of art. And here Feuchtwanger weaves fiction into Goya, the threads of which are closely connected with historical facts and faces, form a whole picture that is unable to leave us indifferent just like the canvases of the master himself.
Artist and politics
The talent of a simple guy from a middle-income family was not called into question, but the path to universal recognition was not easy. Goya's stubborn denial of the canons of classicism and academism could play a cruel joke and set the Inquisition against the artist. But the old school had to come to terms with a new vision until the appointment of the master director of the Royal Academy. Inspired by the work of leading writers and artists, there was already a need in the air for breaking the fetters of prejudice, renewing itself, and progressing.
Goya at Feuchtwanger is an artist with an inexhaustible thirst for new things. Over time, his talent only grows stronger and develops, acquiring new facets and a sense that the highest officials of the state could not fail to notice. An indisputable fact is that the master was close to the royal couple, being her court painter. He painted many portraits of all the highest nobility. Without wanting it, Goya could well be involved in political intrigues, weaving on the sidelines of magnificent palaces.
So the duality of his personality was born. A simple hard worker who fought for his bread, was gnawing, swearing, threatening to defend a place in the sun, "got along" with a caressed noble painter who had immediate access to the rulers of the country. And it was this inner struggle of opposites, reinforced by talent and madness, that awakened in Goya a sense of justice and a burning pain for the fate of the country, which received injuries from the actions of the Inquisition. Despite the danger of having an opinion different from the recognized one, Goya dared to express it in his paintings, where scenes of everyday life are depicted as attractive and repulsive.
Women and the master
Depravity and passion run like a red thread through Feuchtwanger's Goya. These emotions, which the artist more than received from the fateful women of his time, engendered madness in him, but inspired the best paintings. Love went along with hatred, on an equal footing they influenced the artist’s soul, destroyed his mind and soul. But it was precisely in the period of deep and wild experiences that the master could create masterpieces made by innovative techniques, splashing out on canvases and pain, and happiness, which were inseparable in his fate.
And Spain itself is here in the role of a woman. She is a mach. Courageous, rude, defiant, fearless, passionate and daring - digs into the soul so that it remains there forever.
Such was Goya's lover in Feuchtwanger's novel. Their connection has not been historically confirmed; one could only guess about it from the works of the master. This was a dangerous woman who exerted an indelible influence with her depravity, voluptuousness and disobedience, which so inspired the artist, but corroded his soul.
Madness and Talent
The main protest against the ossified medieval statutes and orders was the last paintings of Goya, which depicted scenes of private life and at the same time were the personification of all the vices and filth that reigned in Spain. The master, on the other hand, devoted himself to feelings to the extreme, and with age, he began to be overcome by the madness that seemed to provoke demons not only in his head, but also among people.
This is how Feuchtwanger sees Goya - a man who felt the world and those around him differently. This artist reflected in his canvases, which still give rise to horror in us, but make us look deep into ourselves. The realization that craziness and fears increasingly consumed the artist’s soul, destroyed it with pain and suffering, makes his work even more attractive, deep, filled with meaning.
Value
The painter in the novel is an imperfect person, a true Spaniard, who is not indifferent to the fate of his country. Goya conveys his ardor and sincerity to future generations through his paintings. His passionate nature helped create exciting things, because without broken foundations there would be no innovation.
Therefore, for Lyon Feuchtwanger, “Goya” is the main work of his entire literary career. And if before this work you were not familiar with the artist’s canvases, now you want to find out what this wounded, deep and loving soul looked like, to understand the master, to see his demons in order to fight your own.