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Goya: A Portrait of the Artist
The first major English-language biography of Francisco Goya y Lucientes, who ushered in the modern era
The life of Francisco Goya (1746–1828) coincided with an age of transformation in Spanish history that brought upheavals in the country’s politics and at the court which Goya served, changes in society, the devastation of the Iberian Peninsula in the war against Napoleon, and an ensuing period of political instability. In this revelatory biography, Janis Tomlinson draws on a wide range of documents—including letters, court papers, and a sketchbook used by Goya in the early years of his career—to provide a nuanced portrait of a complex and multifaceted painter and printmaker, whose art is synonymous with compelling images of the people, events, and social revolution that defined his life and era.
Tomlinson challenges the popular image of the artist as an isolated figure obsessed with darkness and death, showing how Goya’s likeability and ambition contributed to his success at court, and offering new perspectives on his youth, rich family life, extensive travels, and lifelong friendships. She explores the full breadth of his imagery—from scenes inspired by life in Madrid to visions of worlds without reason, from royal portraits to the atrocities of war. She sheds light on the artist’s personal trials, including the deaths of six children and the onset of deafness in middle age, but also reconsiders the conventional interpretation of Goya’s late years as a period of disillusion, viewing them instead as years of liberated artistic invention, most famously in the murals on the walls of his country house, popularly known as the “black” paintings.
A monumental achievement, Goya: A Portrait of the Artist is the definitive biography of an artist whose faith in his art and his genius inspired paintings, drawings, prints, and frescoes that continue to captivate, challenge, and surprise us two centuries later.
The life of Francisco Goya (1746–1828) coincided with an age of transformation in Spanish history that brought upheavals in the country’s politics and at the court which Goya served, changes in society, the devastation of the Iberian Peninsula in the war against Napoleon, and an ensuing period of political instability. In this revelatory biography, Janis Tomlinson draws on a wide range of documents—including letters, court papers, and a sketchbook used by Goya in the early years of his career—to provide a nuanced portrait of a complex and multifaceted painter and printmaker, whose art is synonymous with compelling images of the people, events, and social revolution that defined his life and era.
Tomlinson challenges the popular image of the artist as an isolated figure obsessed with darkness and death, showing how Goya’s likeability and ambition contributed to his success at court, and offering new perspectives on his youth, rich family life, extensive travels, and lifelong friendships. She explores the full breadth of his imagery—from scenes inspired by life in Madrid to visions of worlds without reason, from royal portraits to the atrocities of war. She sheds light on the artist’s personal trials, including the deaths of six children and the onset of deafness in middle age, but also reconsiders the conventional interpretation of Goya’s late years as a period of disillusion, viewing them instead as years of liberated artistic invention, most famously in the murals on the walls of his country house, popularly known as the “black” paintings.
A monumental achievement, Goya: A Portrait of the Artist is the definitive biography of an artist whose faith in his art and his genius inspired paintings, drawings, prints, and frescoes that continue to captivate, challenge, and surprise us two centuries later.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published September 15, 2020
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About the author
Janis A. Tomlinson
9 books4 followersJanis Angela Tomlinson has written and lectured extensively on the art of Goya. Her books include Goya: Order and Disorder, Goya: Images of Women, Goya in the Twilight of Enlightenment, and Francisco Goya: The Tapestry Cartoons and Early Career at the Court of Madrid.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 13, 2023
Ukochana pozycja o tym artyście. Wiele informacji, które nie są często powielane w mediach a które do historyczno sztucznego referatu były mi niezbędne
November 13, 2020
Goya’s life, pretty much painting-by-painting.
December 28, 2024
Very objective in its facts/dates and a decent source for a harsh timeline. As a narrative, felt very dry and near-scientific, making it relatively boring to read.
April 24, 2024
The most talented people in their field (dancers, actors, writers) make it look easy, and this book is a stark reminder that writing biographies is *not* easy. I respect the scholarship that went into this book, but Tomlinson did not manage to create a coherent narrative. The convoluted structure of her sentences, paragraphs and chapters left me rereading text again and again; it just shouldn't be that difficult to glean meaning from a book. Many sections suffered from "all trees and no forest" - inclusion of minute irrelevant details while often failing to provide sufficient context and analysis for for the average reader.
May 26, 2022
Un libro denso y lleno de contexto para cada una de las etapas de la vida de Goya. No solo cuenta sus experiencias y menciona sus obras, también narra lo que pasaba en España y en Francia en esas épocas. A pesar de tener tanta información y de a veces adelantarse en ciertos detalles la narración es bastante fluida y natural, lo cual ayuda a que se entiende mucho mejor todo.
December 24, 2021
A great approach to the famous painter's life, with a convincing prose and the necessary touches of art theory (no more, no less).
July 2, 2024
enjoyed. thought her definition of biography was a little strict - would've loved to an extra chapter or two on Goya's legacy
June 19, 2025
Like much of the world around Goya, this book speeds up around 1789. A meticulous biography with a materialist approach to Goya's life and work. A little dry, but at times Tomlinson really gets you with the texture of Goya's historical moment and his position in it. The most prominent example of the latter is Tomlinson writing about Goya's advertisement for his lost golden (!) snuffbox in El Diario, the motion of it falling to the ground or being picked from his pocket in Madrid, the clink off the pavement or the rustle of his coat freshly unavailable to Goya's ears. This kind of stuff is where the book shines.
The text is at its most alive -- kinda like Goya -- when engaging with those closest and most dear to the painter, particularly Zapater. Tomlinson makes excellent use of existing correspondence, though I wish at times she were more prone to the kind of grounded speculation she does a bit of in the introduction and in the epilogue. Ie, the even keeled treatment of the gay stuff in Goya's manic letters to Zapater felt unduly short. I would have spent, like, a page more just on that. But I suppose she was constrained in trying to fit Goya's whole life in here.
A painstakingly well-structured and well-edited history.
The text is at its most alive -- kinda like Goya -- when engaging with those closest and most dear to the painter, particularly Zapater. Tomlinson makes excellent use of existing correspondence, though I wish at times she were more prone to the kind of grounded speculation she does a bit of in the introduction and in the epilogue. Ie, the even keeled treatment of the gay stuff in Goya's manic letters to Zapater felt unduly short. I would have spent, like, a page more just on that. But I suppose she was constrained in trying to fit Goya's whole life in here.
A painstakingly well-structured and well-edited history.
January 2, 2026
Enjoyed this all the way through because I was very interested in learning more about the artist and the history. If you’re not interested in learning it might be dry but I didn’t feel that.
Author is deeply invested in rejecting any notion of homosexuality or homoeroticism.
Feel that it does manage to leave some things out or get bogged down in details more related to other figures. Still a very impressive project and one that greatly increased my own understanding of Goya and the intricacies of Spain during his life.
Author is deeply invested in rejecting any notion of homosexuality or homoeroticism.
Feel that it does manage to leave some things out or get bogged down in details more related to other figures. Still a very impressive project and one that greatly increased my own understanding of Goya and the intricacies of Spain during his life.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews