Francisco de Goya, “The Agility and Audacity of Juanito Apiñani in [the Ring] at Madrid,†from the series “La Tauromaquia (The Bullfight),†1816, etching and aquatint; Sarah C. Garver Fund, 1965.

The Worcester Art Museum is displaying two complete sets of Francisco de Goya prints from its permanent collection through April 17.

The museum possesses complete sets of his two major print series on bullfighting, “The Tauromaquia (The Art of Bullfighting),” which loosely documents the history of Spanish bullfighting, and his lithographic masterpiece, “The Bulls of Bordeaux.”

The bullfight remains a controversial symbol of Spanish national identity. Likewise, this exhibition showcases Goya’s complicated, sometimes ambivalent relationship to the sport. At times presented as a noble and heroic display of humanity’s ability to conquer a primal, fierce enemy, “Tauromaquia” uses bullfighting as the cultural connection unifying Spain’s turbulent Iberian, Muslim and Christian past. In contrast, “The Bulls of Bordeaux” presents a darker side of bullfighting in which the spectators and toreadors are unruly and at times dishonorable toward the captive bull.

The Worcester Art Museum is on Salisbury Street. For information, 508-799-4406 or www.worcesterart.org .