Poor little things!
Ca. 1797. Red chalk on laid paper.Not on display
Preparatory drawing for Capricho 22 (G02110) . Goya’s attack on prostitution is a subtle and wide-ranging one. In drawings such as this one he adopts a commiserative tone towards the girls, who have been arrested for engaging in prostitution and are being led away to prison by the constables: “Let those whose hem is undone take up sewing. Round them up for they have been loose long enough.”