William Blake, The Ancient of Days setting a Compass to the Earth (detail), Frontispiece to Europe a Prophecy, 1794

This plate: Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Museum, P.127-1950(19), 1821

Image here via: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Europe_a_Prophecy_copy_K_plate_01.jpg

Poet, painter, and prophet. Those are quite some accomplishments, and mere labels fail to do justice to someone who was the very cornerstone of the Romantic era. Radical and eccentric in just about every aspect of his life and work, he was just too much for some contemporaries, who declared him simply mad. And yet the slur did not ring true for all. Throughout his life and long after it, he had a coterie of devoted followers. One group in particular called themselves The Ancients.

We will explore Blake’s life and work, with a particular focus on his paintings and prints, before introducing some of his followers – most notably, Samuel Palmer, George Richmond, and John Linnell.

RJW F2604 Online (via Zoom)

A 5-hour short course, delivered via 2 x 2½-hour sessions on consecutive Mondays (Monday 19 & Monday 26 January).

£40 (individual registration); £72 (for two people sharing one screen).