Francisco de Goya

Matador Killing the Bull (Suerte de matar)

Matador Killing the Bull (Suerte de matar)
Datos Generales
Cronología
1793
Dimensiones
42 x 31 cm
Técnica y soporte
Oil on tin
Reconocimiento de la autoría de Goya
Undisputed work
Titular
Private collection
Ficha: realización/revisión
28 Apr 2010 / 14 Jun 2023
Historia

This work was painted during Goya's stay in Cádiz in 1793 and delivered in January of the following year to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando, Madrid, where, according to De Salas, it remained for some time. It later went to the collection of the Duke and Duchess of Medinaceli.

It has also belonged to the collection of Ceán Bermúdez, Marquis of La Torrecilla, and that of the Duchess of Cardona.

Análisis artístico

In a bullring which may be that of Madrid, the matador prepares to deliver the killing blow at the end of the fight. In the centre of the composition, in the foreground, the bullfighter holds aloft his sword, about to thrust it into the bull, whilst using his hat in place of his cape to distract the animal. According to Gassier, this image of a matador approaching the bull just prior to killing it can be seen repeated in Goya's Bullfighting (Tauromaquia) series of etchings, and most notably in plate number 18, entitled The Daring of Martincho in the Ring at Zaragoza (rec. no.).

Behind the matador and the bull, two horses lie dead on the ground, and between them a picador on horseback contemplates the scene. In front of and behind the barrier, some members of the bullfighter's team discuss the fight, whilst others watch on, waiting for the final blow. The stands, which are almost entirely in shadow, are filled with attentive spectators.

The light coming from the right-hand side illuminates a portion of the stands and part of the ring itself, inviting our gaze to fall back onto the figure of the matador. This lighting also creates a somewhat theatrical atmosphere, magnifying the drama of the matador's pose and the importance of this exact moment.

For more information, see Bulls in the Meadow.

 

Exposiciones
  • Goya
    Koninklijke Musea Voor Schone Kunsten Van België
    Brussels
    1985
    consultant editor Luis González Seara. From October 26th to December 22nd 1985
  • Goya: toros y toreros
    Espace Van Gogh
    Arles
    1990
    displayed also at Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, Madrid, consultant editor Pierre Gassier.
  • Goya. El Capricho y la Invención. Cuadros de gabinete, bocetos y miniaturas
    Museo Nacional del Prado
    Madrid
    1993
    from November 18th 1993 to February 15th 1994. Exhibited also at the Royal Academy of Arts, London, March 18th to June 12th 1994 and The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, July 16th to October 16th 1994, consultant editors Manuela B. Mena Marqués and Juliet Wilson-Bareau
  • Goya
    Basle
    2021
Bibliografía
  • DESPARMET FITZ - GERALD, Xavier
    L'œuvre peint de Goya. 4 vols
    Bibliography']['number
    París
    1928-1950
    p. 134, cat. 473
  • GASSIER, Pierre y WILSON, Juliet
    Vie et ouvre de Francisco de Goya
    Bibliography']['number
    ParísOffice du livre
    1970
    p. 169, cat. 323
  • GUDIOL RICART, José
    Bibliography']['number
    BarcelonaPolígrafa
    1970
    vol. I, p. 278, cat. 278
  • ANGELIS, Rita de
    L’opera pittorica completa di Goya
    Bibliography']['number
    MilanRizzoli
    1974
    pp. 106, cat. 273
  • CAMÓN AZNAR, José
    Francisco de Goya, 4 vols.
    Bibliography']['number
    ZaragozaCaja de Ahorros de Zaragoza, Aragón y Rioja
    1980-1982
    vol. II, p. 81
  • GASSIER, Pierre
    Goya, toros y toreros
    Bibliography']['number
    MadridMinisterio de Cultura, Comunidad de Madrid
    1990
    pp. 64 y 65 (il.), cat. 8
  • MENA, Manuela B. y WILSON-BAREAU, Juliet (comisarias)
    Goya. El capricho y la invención. Cuadros de gabinete, bocetos y miniaturas
    Bibliography']['number
    MadridMuseo del Prado
    1993
    p. 191, 192, 193 y 199 (il.), cat. 37
  • SCHULZ, Andrew
    “Moors and the Bullfight: History and National Identity in Goya's Tauromaquia”
    Burlington magazine
    Bibliography']['number
    London
    2008
    p. 195
  • SUREDA PONS, Joan
    Los mundos de Goya (1746-1828)
    Bibliography']['number
    BarcelonaLunwerg
    2008
    p. 239
Enlaces externos
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