Francisco Goya: A Life Painted in Shadow and Light Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes, born March 30, 1746, in Fuendetodos, Spain, remains one of the most profoundly influential figures in Western art. His career spanned over six decades, evolving from a court painter to a deeply personal and often unsettling chronicler of his time. More than simply an artist, Goya was a social observer, a political commentator, and a master of capturing the complexities of human emotion – joy, despair, madness, and the horrors of war. His work reflects not just the historical upheavals he witnessed but also…