The Pastorals of Virgil

1821

William Blake

Associated Names
William Blake

Artist, British, 1757 - 1827

This is a drawing of four pastoral scenes stacked vertically, each depicting interactions in a natural setting with sheep and figures. The first scene shows two robed figures standing on either side of a tree with a sun setting behind rolling hills. The second scene features a reclining figure under a curving tree with a full moon and a spherical object in the night sky. The third panel displays a robed figure holding a shepherd's staff watching over a small flock of sheep, with a dynamic figure leaping in the background. The final scene mirrors the first, depicting two robed figures on either side of a bare, twisted tree, with two visible sheep. Each scene employs delicate, fine lines to form textured details of the landscape, figures, and animals.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    wood engraving (4 proofs on uncut sheet)

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet: 15.6 x 10.8 cm (6 1/8 x 4 1/4 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.1868

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Bindman 1978, no. 607, State -610


Artwork history & notes

Exhibition History

1957

  • he Art of William Blake, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1957, no. 79.

1965

  • William Blake, Andrew Dickson White Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 1965, no. 35, repro.

1968

  • The Woodcut Revival, 1800-1925, Museum of Art, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 1968, no. 2, repro (detail).

1988

  • The Pastoral Landscape: The Modern Vision, The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C., 1988-1989, no. 84, fig. 169.

1997

  • Six Centuries/Six Artists, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1997.

2006

  • The Artist's Vision: Romantic Traditions in Great Britain, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2006 - 2007

Bibliography

1978

  • Bindman, David. The Complete Graphic Works of William Blake. London: Thames and Hudson, 1978.

Wikidata ID

Q64962798

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