Ni Asi La Distingue (Even This Way He Cannot Make Her Out)

Datelate 18th-early 19th century

Maker Francisco José Goya y Lucientes Spanish, 1746-1828

Label TextWelcome to the eerie and enigmatic world of Los Caprichos! In this astonishing series of prints, Francisco de Goya (1746–1828) takes aim at Spanish society at the close of the 18th century. This was an era marked by numerous social upheavals: the fiscal crises wrought by war and taxation, the shifting power dynamics of the ruling classes, the draconian fanaticism of the Spanish Inquisition, and the turning point in European thought known as the Enlightenment. In sardonic and often surrealistic vignettes, the Los Caprichos series lays bare the outmoded belief systems, irrelevant superstitions, ignorance, decadence, and hypocrisy of the status quo, and it champions reason, justice, social reform, and intellectual freedom. Accompanying texts added by Goya hint at the meaning of each image, which is often obscure to us. Because the series follows no sequential narrative, its stories are open to many interpretations. Here, Goya pokes fun at the fashion preferences of contemporary dandies, who considered the quizzing glass—a hand-held, single-lens eyeglass—to be the height of elegance whether or not there was anything wrong with their eyesight. Even with the aid of such eyewear, this particular gallant is unable to recognize the false coquetry of the object of his desire. Indeed, with or without corrective lenses, looks can still be deceiving. As one contemporary commentator observed, “To know what she is, a quizzing glass does not suffice; one needs judgement and worldly knowledge, and that is precisely what this poor gentleman lacks.”

Object number44.490

Exhibition HistorySeattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, SAM on Paper: Francisco de Goya’s Los Caprichos, October 3, 2025 - March 29, 2026.

Credit LineEugene Fuller Memorial Collection

MediumEtching, aquatint, drypoint