The Visionary and Illuminated World of William Blake

Catalog description

This course will provide an introduction to the illuminated world of William Blake - poet, prophet, mythmaker, and visionary artist. Blake was also a critic of capitalist modernity writing in an age of industrialization and urbanization, political revolution, religious doubt and doomsdayism, scientific breakthroughs in fields like chemistry and biology, the making of feminism, the birth of animal rights, agitation for the abolition of slavery, challenges to class hierarchy, and the commodification of life. Students will gain familiarity with Blake's illuminated poetry, including The Songs of Innocence and Experience; The Marriage of Heaven and Hell; The Book of Thel; Visions of the Daughters of Albion; The Book of Urizen; America a Prophecy; and Europe a Prophecy. We'll visit places important to the development of these artworks in London, including St. Paul's Cathedral and the Royal Academy of Arts. We'll also have a private tour of Blake's work in the Tate Britain. Students will gain familiarity with Blake's symbolic artwork, the basic principles of his belief system and ideology, and the unique method of illuminated printing peculiar to him as a poet, visual artist, engraver, and bookmaker.