Francisco Goya

Goya began as a tapestry designer and rose to become First Court Painter in Spain. A severe illness in 1793 left him completely deaf, and his work grew darker and more critical thereafter.

During Napoleon's invasion of Spain he recorded its atrocities in the prints The Disasters of War. In old age he painted the “Black Paintings” on the walls of his house before going into exile in Bordeaux. He is often called the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns.