Fact and Fantasy: William Blake and Ireland

A lecture by Anne Hodge (Curator of Prints and Drawings, National Gallery of Ireland) organised by the Department of History of Art & Architecture.

Since 1893, when W.B. Yeats claimed William Blake as Irish in his Introduction to Poems of William Blake, the idea that the English artist and poet had origins in Ireland resurfaces from time to time. Blake’s vivid imagination and his use of images and ideas gleaned from a world beyond that ordinarily visible, has led to comparisons with the Irish psyche. Although Yeats’s conviction appears to be based more on wishful thinking than concrete evidence, there are interesting connections between Blake and Ireland. This talk will look at the importance of Cork born James Barry, Professor of Painting at the Royal Academy, in Blake’s development as an artist. Long after his death, Blake influenced diverse figures in Irish cultural life. George Russell (AE), mystic and poet, Dublin-born Phoebe Anna Traquair, a significant figure in the Arts and Crafts movement in Edinburgh, and twentieth-century painter Francis Bacon, all owe a debt to Blake’s visionary art. This talk aims to separate the threads of fact from the fictions they are intertwined with.

This event is run in accordance with Trinity’s Dignity and Respect policy, and its commitment to nurturing a respectful and inclusive research culture.
Please indicate if you have any access requirements, such as ISL/English interpreting, so that we can facilitate you in attending this event. Contact: BETHOMAS@tcd.ie