1806
oil
panel
From the collection of Art Institute of Chicago
Friar Pedro Binds El Maragato with a Rope is a 1806 oil by Francisco Goya, a Romanticism work, held at Art Institute of Chicago.
You see a friar tying up a wild-eyed bandit with rope while two other men watch. Goya painted this like a comic strip—six quick scenes of the same crime, all on one small panel. It’s rare for him: bright, almost funny, and made just for fun, not for a king or church. The friar looks calm, the bandit looks ridiculous, and the whole thing feels like a story you’d tell over wine. If you like how Goya mixes drama and humor, look up *impasto*—the thick, buttery brushstrokes that make the figures pop.
In small, lively paintings made for his own pleasure or for a few discerning patrons, Francisco de Goya explored satirical and popular aspects of Spanish life. This series was inspired by a contemporary event, the capture of notorious criminal El Maragato by Friar Pedro de Saldivia in 1806. After escaping from prison, El Maragato spent two months stealing food, guns, and money before trying to take Friar Pedro and other innocent people hostage. The friar outsmarted the bandit, however, seizing his gun, shooting him in the thigh as he tried to flee, and finally tying him up. This story was…
One of a series of six small paintings in an inventory of Goya’s collection, Madrid, taken in 1812 for the division of property between the artist and his son Javier following the death of the artist's wife; the group of small paintings marked X8 being allotted to the son: "Seis quadros del Maragato señalados con el número ocho, en 700 [reales]" (the inventory mark has been removed from the painting and is no longer visible) [see Gassier and Wilson 1971]; presumably Javier Goya after 1812. Lafitte collection, Madrid; sale, Paris, Hôtel Drouot, March 7, 1861, bought in together with other…
New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Spanish Painting, 1928, cat. 7–12, ill. The Art Institute of Chicago, Century of Progress Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture, June 1–November 1, 1933, cat. 166-f. The Art Institute of Chicago, Century of Progress Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture, June 1–November 1, 1934, cat. 69-f. M. Knoedler & Co., New York, Loan Exhibition of Paintings by Goya, April 9-April 21, 1934, cat. 21. Columbus, Ohio, Gallery of Fine Arts, Exhibition of Spanish Art, 1936. The Art Institute of Chicago, Goya, 1941, pp. 46–49, cat. 76 (ill.) New York, Wildenstein & Co., A…
Read the full account in the museum source.
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; Spanish: ; 30 March 1746 – 16 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker.
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