GOYA’S BLACK PAINTINGS
When they unbind Goya’s paintings from the wall
long after the paint dripped into el Quinta Del Sordo and his despair seeped back out
they’ll wonder why he made his delusions his companions
What comfort he gained by giving his fear eyes
to trail him from room to room
how he could have lived with death peering from the dark
and as an artist driven insane with his work not by it
He painted 14 canvases before his ailing mind failed with his body
14 critiques on the human condition and human made, self inflicted suffering
When he painted saturn with his bloody mouth
gnashing his son, ripped flesh between his teeth
echoing words he never knew how to say with his voice
And how he saw man ripping man apart
when they favored their countries like gods
Gruesome images depict the war ravaging his mind
his paintings depictions of sanity desperately trying to prevail
against the madness called the aftermath of the spanish independence
and being swept into it despite knowing
it’s never quiet when your mind is on the western front
He never named his paintings
because visualizing his fears
echoed words that fell on deaf ears
When we ripped his paintings out of his walls
to reposition them in el museo del prado under blinding white lights
gifting them pseudonyms in index cards next to frames,
trying to tame the paintings that watch/torment us from the dark
aware of every time we’ve sinned
We stole from them,
the visceral comfort that brought a sweet man sweet relief
from the turmoil of life
tasted in a spectrum of color and war,
leaving the stain of blood on a pacifist’s tongue
SEANCE WILLIAMS ‘23
Poetry
“This piece is about the artist Francisco Goya who created the famous black paints before they were posthumously discovered. Many of his works played on themes of isolation due to his self implemented isolation after becoming deaf. I personally identified with making art for art’s sake which made me write this poem based on creating art just for a moment of comfort even if it isn’t understood by others.”