One Can't Tell Why 18th-19th century

Curator: Here we have Francisco Goya's print titled "One Can't Tell Why," held in the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It strikes me as terribly bleak, a row of figures weighed down, sitting in silence. What's the story here? Curator: Goya often used printmaking to comment on the social and political upheavals of his time, particularly the abuses of power. Look closely at their garments, the signs they wear. Editor: So, they're labeled... branded almost, with their supposed crimes or failings for all to see. It's a visual condemnation. Curator: Exactly. Goya was deeply critical of institutions like the Inquisition, its methods of public shaming, and the whole industry of moral judgment it perpetuated. Editor: It's a chillingly effective image. You can almost feel their despair etched into the plate. Curator: The print becomes a form of protest, implicating the viewer in this spectacle of suffering. A dark reminder that such things happened, that power was wielded in this way. Editor: It definitely gives you pause, doesn't it? The human cost of ideology so starkly rendered. Curator: Precisely, Goya challenges us to consider our role in the perpetuation of such systems. Editor: Well, I for one, feel properly chastened. Let's move on to something a little lighter, shall we?