Children playing bullfighting

Throughout his career, Goya painted several scenes featuring children. This series of six canvases is known as Children’s Games, charming scenes full of action and movement, featuring children and depicting the harsh lives of poor children and the public’s indifference toward them. Three of the scenes in the series are set in Rome, Italy, and the other three in Spain. They showcase children’s unbridled strength and vigor.

This urban setting, featuring a building with a large entrance arch, may evoke images of Goya’s native Zaragoza. The group of children is playing “bullfighting”, a game rooted in tradition and imagination. At the center of the composition, a boy carrying a basket with horns acts as the bull, charging at another child. Some children play the role of bullfighters, while others act as picadors. They are improvising a bullfight.