Why did Francisco Goya begin making more drawings and engravings after 1792?

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Francisco Goya: Self-portrait — Francisco Goya Detail of *Self-portrait*, etching by Francisco Goya from the series *Los caprichos*, 1799.

Following a severe illness in 1792 that left him permanently deaf, Francisco Goya experienced a significant shift in his artistic approach. While his commissioned paintings often remained bound by conventional formulas, he sought new outlets for his "searching eye," critical mind, and imagination that were not possible in formal works.1

Goya turned to the more intimate mediums of drawing and engraving to pursue more purposeful and serious satires. These mediums allowed him the freedom to explore "fantasy and invention," enabling him to attack political, social, and religious abuses through caricature. This transition is most notably exemplified by his series of 80 etchings, Los caprichos, where he utilized the aquatint technique to achieve dramatic tonal effects and express his observations on the "extravagances and follies" of society.1