William Blake, “Newton”, 1795–c.1805. Tate.
William Blake exhibition at the Tate Britain This autumn, Tate Britain presents the largest survey of work by William Blake (1757-1827) in the UK for a generation. 11 September 2019 – 2 February 2020.]]>
Source: Tate Britain
A visionary painter, printmaker and poet, Blake created some of the most iconic images in the history of British art and has remained an inspiration to artists, musicians, writers and performers worldwide for over two centuries. This ambitious exhibition brings together over 300 remarkable and rarely seen works and rediscover Blake as a visual artist for the 21st century.
Tate Britain reimagines the artist’s work as he intended it to be experienced. Blake’s art was a product of his tumultuous times, with revolution, war and progressive politics acting as the crucible of his unique imagination, yet he struggled to be understood and appreciated during his life. Now renowned as a poet, Blake also had grand ambitions as a visual artist and envisioned vast frescos that were never realised. For the first time, “The Spiritual Form of Nelson Guiding Leviathan”, c.1805-9, and “The Spiritual Form of Pitt Guiding Behemoth”, c.1805, are digitally enlarged and projected onto the gallery wall on the huge scale that Blake imagined. The original artworks are displayed nearby in a restaging of Blake’s ill-fated exhibition of 1809, the artist’s only significant attempt to create a public reputation for himself as a painter. Tate recreates the domestic room above his family hosiery shop in which the show was held, allowing visitors to encounter the paintings exactly as people did in 1809.
Additional highlights include a selection of works from the Royal Collection and some of his best-known paintings including “Newton”, 1795-c.1805, and “Ghost of a Flea”, c.1819-20. This intricate work was inspired by a séance-induced vision and is shown alongside a rarely seen preliminary sketch. The exhibition closes with “The Ancient of Days”, 1827, a frontispiece for an edition of “Europe: A Prophecy”, completed only days before the artist’s death.
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William Blake’s World: ‘A New Heaven Is Begun’ – Morgan Library and Museum (exhibition, 2009-2010)
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