Illustration to Night Thoughts - William Blake
Archival giclée
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Description
A dramatic engraving by William Blake from his 1797 series illustrating Edward Young's poem, Night Thoughts, featuring a spectral warning.
This engraving originates from William Blake's ambitious project to illustrate Edward Young's poem, Night Thoughts, commissioned by the publisher Richard Edwards in 1795. Blake produced over five hundred watercolours for the series, though only a small portion were eventually engraved for the 1797 publication. The image depicts a dramatic scene where a figure, startled by a spectral presence, spills a glass of wine. The composition is split between the printed text block and the illustrative space below, a characteristic layout for this edition.
Blake employs a stark, monochromatic palette, using cross-hatching and wash techniques to create depth and shadow. The figures are rendered with the muscular, elongated anatomy typical of Blake's work. The spectral figure on the right gestures towards the text, which includes references to Belshazzar and the writing on the wall, MENE TEKEL. This visual narrative reflects the poem's preoccupation with mortality, the passage of time, and the vanity of earthly pleasures. The contrast between the mundane act of spilling wine and the supernatural apparition creates a sense of urgency and moral warning. The engraving demonstrates Blake's ability to interpret complex theological and philosophical texts through his own visionary lens. His line work is precise, capturing the tension in the figures' expressions and the fluid movement of the drapery. This print offers a glimpse into the collaborative yet often strained relationship between Blake and his commercial publishers, as well as his dedication to integrating visual art with poetic text.
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Because every print is made to order, we don't offer change-of-mind returns, refunds or exchanges. If your order arrives faulty, damaged or incorrect, we'll replace it free of charge — just contact us within 48 hours of delivery. See our refunds page for full details.
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Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
Care and materials
Specific Features
Every Solis piece is made to order with archival, gallery-quality materials built to last.
- Museum-grade giclée printing for rich, fade-resistant colour
- Archival matte fine-art paper, FSC-certified
- Multiple sizes and framing options available
- Frames in black, natural wood, dark wood or white
- Framed prints arrive ready to hang
Care & Cleaning
To keep your artwork looking its best:
- Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth
- Avoid prolonged direct sunlight
- Never use liquid cleaners on the print or canvas surface
- Keep in a dry, room-temperature space
- Handle prints with clean, dry hands
Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
Illustration to Night Thoughts - William Blake
Artist Biography
William Blake
He married Catherine Boucher in 1782. She was illiterate at the time and signed the marriage register with an X. He taught her to read, write, and engrave, and she became his collaborator for the next forty-five years: mixing paint, operating the printing press, hand-colouring plates, and binding the finished pages into covers.
Their working method was Blake's own invention, revealed to him (he said) in a dream by the spirit of his dead brother Robert. Relief etching reversed the standard printmaking process: instead of cutting lines into copper, Blake wrote and drew on the plate in acid-resistant varnish, then dissolved the surrounding metal with acid, leaving text and image raised. This allowed him to compose poetry and illustration simultaneously on a single plate, print them together, then hand-colour each sheet in watercolour. Every copy was therefore unique. Songs of Innocence and of Experience was produced this way. He sold fewer than thirty copies during his lifetime.
In 1803, he physically threw a soldier named John Schofield out of his garden in Felpham. He was charged with assault and with uttering treasonable expressions against the King. He was acquitted at the Chichester assizes in January 1804.
Newton, painted in 1795, shows the scientist as a young man with the body of a Greek god, bent forward at the bottom of a dark ocean, fixing his gaze on a pair of compasses, measuring and drawing on a scroll that appears to project from his own head. It is a painting about the limits of reason: beautiful, precise, and missing everything beyond the edge of the paper. The Ancient of Days, from the same period, depicts his mythological figure Urizen crouching at the edge of a void, reaching down with a compass to measure the darkness below.
He died on 12 August 1827, working on illustrations for Dante's Divine Comedy. He was buried at Bunhill Fields. The wider recognition came decades later.
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