Man Sweeping the Interpreter's Parlour

William Blake
(1757–1827)

Man Sweeping the Interpreter's Parlour

White-line metalcut, printed in relief
Second state (of two), ca. 1822
Copy 2J

Gift of Mrs. Landon K. Thorne

1973.12
Item description: 

Blake probably created this metalcut during the first half of the 1820s. This second impression is printed on paper watermarked 1821. It illustrates a story from John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. The man sweeping only stirs up dust, while the woman sprinkles water to settle it and sweeten the room. The Interpreter explains that the parlour represents the heart of man, whose original sin and corruption cannot be settled by the sweeper (the law) but rather can be by the soothing blessing of the woman (the Gospel).

The theme repeats one of Blake's major beliefs that "the Letter Killeth The Spirit giveth Life" (pl. 1 of Job). The Ancients frequently called Blake "the Interpreter."

About this exhibition: 

William Blake (1757–1827) occupies a unique place in the history of Western art. His creativity included both the visual and literary arts. In his lifetime he was best known as an engraver; now he is also recognized for his innovative poetry, printmaking, and painting. Blake's keen perception of the political and social climate found expression throughout his work. His strong sense of independence is evident in the complex mythology that he constructed in response to the age of revolution.

Blake was already recognized as an engraver at age twenty-five, when his first volume of poems appeared. At thirty-three, in The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, he audaciously claimed that his birth had marked the origin of a "new heaven" in which his own art would exemplify the creativity prefigured by Milton and Michelangelo. By that time, Blake, in one of his most productive periods, had already produced Songs of Innocence and was at work on a series of illuminated books. In 1818 he met John Linnell, a young painter and engraver, through whom a group of young artists became Blake's followers. Calling themselves the Ancients, they helped perpetuate Blake's influence for generations.

The Morgan's Blake collection—one of this country's most distinguished—began with purchases as early as 1899 by Pierpont Morgan. During the tenure of Charles Ryskamp, director from 1969 to 1986, major gifts almost doubled the size of its Blake holdings. In recent years Ryskamp's own gifts of engravings, letters, and related materials have significantly enriched its scholarly resources.

Exhibition section: 

I. Engravings

William Blake was tutored by his mother, given drawing lessons at the age of ten, and at fifteen apprenticed to James Basire, one of the most prominent engravers of the day. Seven years later, when the apprenticeship was complete, Blake was admitted to study at the Royal Academy. Because of this solid instruction, he was admired for his craftsmanship and often identified as "Mr. Blake, the engraver." Throughout his life, he maintained that engraving was a true art form: "Painting is Drawing on Canvas & Engraving is drawing on Copper & Nothing Else." Blake's prints demonstrate his strong commitment to line, developed through Basire and enhanced by his own creativity. Fortunately his engraver's training would support him, though not well, for the remainder of his life. At forty-six, he wrote, "I curse & bless Engraving alternately because it takes so much time & is so untractable, tho capable of such beauty & perfection."

Credits: 

This online exhibition is presented in conjunction with the exhibition William Blake's World: "A New Heaven Is Begun" on view September 11, 2009, through January 3, 2010.

This exhibition is made possible through the generosity of Fay and Geoffrey Elliott.