1799
ink
paper
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Duendecitos (Hobgoblins) is a 1799 ink by Francisco Goya, a Romanticism work, depicting Drinking, held at National Gallery of Art.
You see two small, hunched creatures with pointed ears and long claws, crouching in the dark like they’re whispering secrets. Goya made this etching in 1799 as part of a series called *Los Caprichos*—a set of prints that poked fun at Spanish society. The hobgoblins feel like a joke about human folly, but their shadowy shapes also make them unsettling. The technique, called aquatint, lets Goya create soft, smoky tones that make the scene feel eerie and dreamlike. To see more of Goya’s strange, dark humor, look up *etching*.
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; Spanish: ; 30 March 1746 – 16 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker.
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