William Blake was one of the most important British artists of the Romantic period. He was a printmaker, watercolorist and poet who combined these media to express his mystical vision of the universe.
Blake embodied the Romantic ideal of independence by self-publishing his work and advocating the expression of individual perception, while rejecting the neo-classical canon of the Royal Academy. His highly idiosyncratic style is indebted to his admiration for the religious subject-pictures of Raphael (1483–1520), Michelangelo (1475–1564) and Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528). Of Blake’s contemporaries, he may be compared to the slightly older Swiss-born Henry Fuseli (1741–1825), whose melodramatic compositions dealing in the world of the literary imagination foreshadowed those of Blake. During his lifetime he had a modest yet zealous following, however his reputation has grown enormously since his death, influencing many writers and artists.
Selected artworks
Top 3 auction prices
2006
2006
2004
Details
Further Reading
Martin Myrone and Amy Concannon, eds., William Blake, exh. cat. London, 2019.
Martin Myrone and Christopher Frayling, The Gothic Reader: A Critical Anthology, London and New York, 2006.
Martin Myrone, ed., Gothic Nightmares: Fuseli, Blake and the Romantic Imagination, exh. cat. London, 2006.
Robin Hamlyn and Michael Phillips, eds., William Blake, exh. cat. New York, 2001.
Martin Butlin, The Paintings and Drawings of William Blake, 2 vols. New Haven, 1981.
David Bindman, The Complete Graphic Works of William Blake, New York, 1978.
Martin Butlin, William Blake: A Complete Catalogue of Works in the Tate Gallery, London, 1971.
Geoffrey Keynes, Engravings by William Blake, the Separate Plates: a Catalogue Raisonné, Dublin, 1956.
Geoffrey Keynes and Edwin Wolf, William Blake’s Illuminated Books: A Census, New York, 1953.
Northrop Frye, Fearful Symmetry: A Study of William Blake, rev. edn Princeton, 1947.
Notable Exhibitions
Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Museum, William Blake’s Universe, 23 February – 19 May 2024; travelled to Hamburg, Hamburger Kunsthalle, 14 June – 8 September 2024. Curated by Andreas Stolzenburg, David Bindman, Esther Chadwick, and Jan Steinke.
Los Angeles, J. Paul Getty Museum, William Blake: Visionary, 17 October 2023 – 14 January 2024. Curated by Julian Brooks, Edina Adam, and Matthew Hargraves.
London, Tate Britain, William Blake, 11 September 2019 – 2 February 2020. Curated by Martin Myrone and Amy Concannon.
Sussex, Petworth House, William Blake in Sussex: Visions of Albion, 13 January – 25 March 2018. Curated by Andrew Loukes.
London, Tate Britain, William Blake, 9 November 2000 – 11 February 2001; New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 29 March – 24 June 2001. Curated by Robin Hamlyn, Michael Phillips, and Elizabeth Barker.