The Poems of Thomas Gray, Design 49, "The Progress of Poesy."
Date:
between 1797 and 1798
Materials & Techniques:
Watercolor with pen and black ink over graphite on moderately thick, slightly textured, cream wove paper with inlaid letterpress page
Dimensions:
Sheet: 16 1/2 x 12 3/4 inches (41.9 x 32.4 cm)
Credit Line:
Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1992.8.11(25)
Gallery Label:
This sheet, one of the fifty-eight that Blake provided for Nancy Flaxman, illustrates Gray’s “Progress of Poesy.” On one side Blake depicts Nature emerging from the moon, lifting the veil off her face to stare into the eyes of the infant Shakespeare and present him with the golden keys that unlock the human passions. In the foreground stands a figure representing the river Avon which flows through Shakespeare’s birthplace of Stratford. On the reverse John Dryden, a poet for whom Blake had little time, receives inspiration from “Bright-eyed Fancy.” Gallery label for Great British Watercolors from the Paul Mellon Collection at the Yale Center for British Art (Yale Center for British Art, 2008-06-09 - 2008-08-17)
