The Hermitage of San Isidro

In 1788, the talented artist created yet another painting. The oil and canvas art featured a church or chapel in the background. Viewers can see a huge crowd of people outside the church.

The crowd seems to be listening in to something or waiting for something. Most of them have covered their heads and it is rainy. The weather is windy and rainy. In the portrait, there is a distinct group of people clearly visible to the viewer. The group contains give people three women who are all seated. A young man seems to offer the woman on the left a drink pouring from an orange jar. The girls are dressed in elegant dresses and the girl on the right holds manual fanning. There are also other items lying on the ground close to where they are seated.

The painting shows the Saint’s Feast Day in Madrid. It is a sketch that Goya made to showcase the celebrations of this special day. The groups near and far are separated using spatial leaps with the major concentration given to the near viewer group. According to critics, the technique used is an urgent and fragmented. The artist brings in clear cut shadows and defined human images especially for the brushwork. Every year on the 15th of May, Spaniards had a feast day where they crossed the river Manzanares and climbed a steep hill to the hermitage above the low-lying meadows. The hermitage was build where the residents believed that Saint Isidore struck soil to bring water for his thirsty master. All this is believed to be in the 11th century.

During this feast, the city dwellers visit Saint Isidore’s hermitage and drink water from the miraculous spring that they believe, he caused to flow. Back then, a group of majas had to wait for their companions to bring them water from the spring. According to Goya's painting, the group at the front had already got their water and can be seen to drink. The large group at the back still waits to get their water from the spring. The line to access the spring is long hence the huge crowds waiting outside the church. For the people to get water, they have to be observed and guided by corps, who are in the crowd and dressed in recognisable uniforms. The painting explains how people respected the hermitage. The artist gives life and a better understanding of the dynamism of the large chapel. Critics feel that Goya did not complete the piece or art.