William Blake: Visionary
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- Create Date：2021-08-08 09:53:14
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Edina Adam
- ISBN：1606066420
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Summary
A richly illustrated， comprehensive introduction to the visionary British artist William Blake。
Celebrated for his boundless imagination and unique vision， William Blake （1757–1827） created some of the most striking and distinctive imagery in art， often combining his poetry and visual images on the page through innovative graphic techniques。 He has proven an enduring inspiration to artists， musicians， poets， and performers worldwide and a fascinating enigma to generations of admirers。
Featuring over 130 color images， this catalogue brings together many of Blake’s most iconic works。 Organized by theme， it explores Blake’s work as a professional printmaker， his roles as both painter-illustrator and poet-painter， his relationship to the medieval， Renaissance， and Baroque artists that preceded him， and his legacy in the United States。 It also examines his visionary prophetic books， including all eighteen plates of America a Prophecy。
This volume is published to accompany an exhibition coming soon to the J。 Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center。
Celebrated for his boundless imagination and unique vision， William Blake （1757–1827） created some of the most striking and distinctive imagery in art， often combining his poetry and visual images on the page through innovative graphic techniques。 He has proven an enduring inspiration to artists， musicians， poets， and performers worldwide and a fascinating enigma to generations of admirers。
Featuring over 130 color images， this catalogue brings together many of Blake’s most iconic works。 Organized by theme， it explores Blake’s work as a professional printmaker， his roles as both painter-illustrator and poet-painter， his relationship to the medieval， Renaissance， and Baroque artists that preceded him， and his legacy in the United States。 It also examines his visionary prophetic books， including all eighteen plates of America a Prophecy。
This volume is published to accompany an exhibition coming soon to the J。 Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center。
Reviews
June
，
Blake was a unique character， and this book captures his printmaking works as well as his poetry， while giving insight into his quirky personality as well。 The 133 illustrations are the highlight， with supplemental essays providing some context for this eccentric artist。 Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review。
Luna
，
A great introduction on William Blake's art。 In short， it is a really enjoyable and aesthetically pleasing book。 A great introduction on William Blake's art。 In short， it is a really enjoyable and aesthetically pleasing book。 。。。more
Janie Anderson
，
The novel #William Blake by # Edina Adam and # Julian Brooks is brilliant。 British artist Blake had such a unique vision。 And for my full review head over to Instagram at Maddie_approves_book_reviews。 Thank you，#Netgalley， # Edina Adam; #Julian Brooks and # Getty
Tony Stacey
，
As you would expect high quality reproductions of Blake's work and interesting essays to go with them。 As you would expect high quality reproductions of Blake's work and interesting essays to go with them。 。。。more
Annie
，
An interesting look on this Artist who many believe was a Visionary ！ Quite hard going at times ，not really for anyone who isn't a pure academic。 But some interesting Paintings & Engravings of Blake's that I had never seen before 。 An interesting look on this Artist who many believe was a Visionary ！ Quite hard going at times ，not really for anyone who isn't a pure academic。 But some interesting Paintings & Engravings of Blake's that I had never seen before 。 。。。more
Kristine
，
William Blake: Visionary by Edina Adam is a free NetGalley ebook that I read in early September。With this collection compiled by the J。 Paul Getty museum， there are biographic and critic-al essays， alongside epic， foreboding， biblical， gloomy paintings， poetry， and lithographs where Blake makes some nods toward celestial astrology and fully embraces folds， creases， and curves of muscle。
Meredith
，
**I received an e-ARC from NetGalley for an honest review**I have always been a fan of William Blake， in particular "The Tyger"。 I've never had a chance to see any of his artwork in person， so I jumped at a chance to review this book。The art included in the book is a variety of pieces across several different mediums， giving a broad overview of Blake's work。 I viewed the work on an iPad， and the details and colors were absolutely stunning。The essays were well written and informative， ， but a tad **I received an e-ARC from NetGalley for an honest review**I have always been a fan of William Blake， in particular "The Tyger"。 I've never had a chance to see any of his artwork in person， so I jumped at a chance to review this book。The art included in the book is a variety of pieces across several different mediums， giving a broad overview of Blake's work。 I viewed the work on an iPad， and the details and colors were absolutely stunning。The essays were well written and informative， ， but a tad on the dry side for my taste。The only thing that would have made this book even better， would have been if the poetry that was included had been typed below the works to make for easier reading。 As someone who is losing my vision due to an illness， this would have made it easier to enjoy the artwork （and poetry） even more than I already did。Overall， this book would be a stunning coffee table piece or as a book to be added to any library for Art History。 。。。more
Jazzy Lemon
，
A brilliant book of beautiful words and stunning art。 A great addition to any art library， and would be the perfect thing to lie on the coffee table when your friends come around。
Stephanie
，
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book。 The exhibition catalog boasts only two essays。 It is advertised as the first loan exhibit of William Blake on the West Coast in the US since 1936。 I believe the Getty could have spared more essay space in the catalog for such a notable artist and unique show。 Visionary passes as an adequate exhibition catalog。
Erin
，
I'll pretty much read any gallery book about any exhibit in a museum， but I especially love those that are expositions on a single artist's life work。 ESPECIALLY if there is very little evidence that this particular artist's work has ever been displayed in this manner at all。 I am a little familiar with William Blake （as any student of art history would be）， but I knew very little about him。 There are a few works of his I had seen before， but in passing rather than a deep study。 I really appreci I'll pretty much read any gallery book about any exhibit in a museum， but I especially love those that are expositions on a single artist's life work。 ESPECIALLY if there is very little evidence that this particular artist's work has ever been displayed in this manner at all。 I am a little familiar with William Blake （as any student of art history would be）， but I knew very little about him。 There are a few works of his I had seen before， but in passing rather than a deep study。 I really appreciated the opportunity to read this book and learn a little bit more about him。 Any artist that goes against the grain in terms of what society expects them to do is a trailblazer in my eyes， and William Blake does just that。 I would happily have attended this exhibition of his work， and would definitely go out of my way to see another in the future if it so happens to cross my path。 This was an excellent introduction to this artist's life work， and I look forward to learning more about him in the future。I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Agnes Preszler
，
As usually， the Paul Getty publications are of high standards， so is this book about William Blake too。 In addition to the biographical knowledge， in the chapters from various authors the reader have the possibility of looking at this artist from different points of view as painter， illustrator， printmaker， creator of myths and so on， receiving information that I think is not possible to achieve in a so complete form from other single resources。
Pop Bop
，
Blake's Fearful SymmetryThe Getty Museum has mounted some fine exhibitions over the past few years， and the books that have been published to accompany and complement the exhibits have uniformly been first rate。 I was， however， a bit reluctant to consider this one。 All I knew about William Blake was that he wrote a poem that's a staple of middle grade anthologies， （"Tyger Tyger， burning bright。。。"）， and he was considered nutzy in his time and pretty much ever since。 The Getty's exhibit and this Blake's Fearful SymmetryThe Getty Museum has mounted some fine exhibitions over the past few years， and the books that have been published to accompany and complement the exhibits have uniformly been first rate。 I was， however， a bit reluctant to consider this one。 All I knew about William Blake was that he wrote a poem that's a staple of middle grade anthologies， （"Tyger Tyger， burning bright。。。"）， and he was considered nutzy in his time and pretty much ever since。 The Getty's exhibit and this book establish why you should never get too comfortable with settled， secondhand opinions。 It turns out that William Blake was most definitely nutzy， but in a fascinating， eccentric， transgressive， idiosyncratic， and entirely admirable fashion。This book doesn't make any effort to "rehabilitate" Blake by explaining him away as simply misunderstood， or ahead of his time。 Rather， we fully embrace his eccentricities and the difficulty he presents across the entire spectrum of his work。 This book is almost a celebration of Blake as the inspired， weird and wonderful visionary。 To draw a phrase from Timothy Potts' Foreword， the exhibit intent is to "present a more rounded picture of Blake"， but not to diminish or dismiss his unique vision。 Mission accomplished。This book is nicely organized。 It comprises three crisp and varied essays and a treasure trove of prints， drawings and paintings， including some major rarities。 Having ended my formal Blake education at "Tyger Tyger。。。" and a few incomprehensible poems， I had no idea that Blake was such an accomplished printmaker， and much of the book's text is either taken up with his life and work in this field， or addresses the matter of how thoroughly Blake has been admired and appreciated in America。 As to the generous collection of plates， （133 pieces， which take up the bulk of the book）， that is divided into sections devoted to Printmaker， Painter-Illustrator， Painter-Poet， Visionary， and Mythmaker。 I assume it was considered disrespectful to have a section captioned "Nutzy"， but the "Visionary" and "Mythmaker" chapters come close enough。 The plates in each section are introduced with a brief overview。 （And it goes almost without saying that the actual production quality of the book is top drawer。）So， while Blake isn't the first artist I would think of when mounting an exhibition， this turned out to be a nervy choice and a fine collaboration with the Tate in London and a wide range of private collectors and public collections。 Again to borrow from Potts， "astonishing and captivating"。（Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement， or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review。 Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book。） 。。。more
Annarella
，
I love William Blake and this book made me learned a lot about him and his work。Well written and informative， highly recommended。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine。
janne Boswell
，
I enjoyed it。 William Blake is known as the "Poet Painter" and that comes through in this book。 His paintings and prints tell stories。 I prefer more contemporary works， I believe this style is more from a Baroque period？ But， I enjoyed the graphic nature of the prints- a woman pulling a man's intestines and wadding them up into a ball。 Fascinating。 These are strong。 powerful images that speak volumes。 Thank you NetGalley & J Paul Getty Museum for the opportunity to review this book。 I enjoyed it。 William Blake is known as the "Poet Painter" and that comes through in this book。 His paintings and prints tell stories。 I prefer more contemporary works， I believe this style is more from a Baroque period？ But， I enjoyed the graphic nature of the prints- a woman pulling a man's intestines and wadding them up into a ball。 Fascinating。 These are strong。 powerful images that speak volumes。 Thank you NetGalley & J Paul Getty Museum for the opportunity to review this book。 。。。more
Theediscerning
，
For full disclosure， I chose a copy of this book to peruse digitally because it was free， and with as far as I knew an irreparable dislike of the subject。 It would have to go some way to make me a convert， I thought。 To that extent the book is a failure， partly because it has so very little academic writing in it。 We get an introduction to the man， and it's more or less inferred that， in the ageless cycle of art from great heights to poor lows， Blake was continuing that movement while thinking h For full disclosure， I chose a copy of this book to peruse digitally because it was free， and with as far as I knew an irreparable dislike of the subject。 It would have to go some way to make me a convert， I thought。 To that extent the book is a failure， partly because it has so very little academic writing in it。 We get an introduction to the man， and it's more or less inferred that， in the ageless cycle of art from great heights to poor lows， Blake was continuing that movement while thinking he was providing a new height， and reacting to a previous low， when patently the opposite was true。 "One must be born with a sympathy for [Blake's aesthetic]" someone once said， and that's something I wasn't （that and the heightened religiosity）。But just because he's not in my DNA to appreciate， I was still open to seeing more of his work， correcting a gaping lapse in my poor art knowledge。 And this book there was a distinctive success。 It's the catalogue to a major show by the Getty that the coronasniffles was threatening at the time I dealt with it， and really does provide a highly visual guide to the man's output， from pure – and very fine – engravings easily reproduced， to those that were hand-printed， and hand-washed in watercolour he used to accompany Milton， Dante， the Bible and so much more。 Again I would hold this up as being low on words – other catalogues have some semblance of the information panels that would be hung with each art work， and we get none of that here。 So for an artist who surely needs more explanation that most， all we get is what equates to about half a dozen gallery-introducing standees， the introduction itself， and a specialist-only resume of how Blake got to be so collected so avidly by American art lovers and bibliophiles。So don't come here to learn much about what you're witnessing， but the productions of the art are top notch， and if the visuals and the collection that made up that aesthetic are what you require， then this is strongly recommended。 I did see some interesting images， and he did more comely women than his boggle-eyed norm had me expect， but I remained a sceptic。 。。。more
Jilly
，
I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the fascinating life and works of William Blake in this book written as an accompaniment to the upcoming exhibition at the J Paul Getty Museum。 Arranged in a clear order， this book is easy to follow and combines his brilliance as an artist as well as a poet。 Packed with information， this is a wonderful introduction to the tremendous talent of William Blake。 The plates are outstanding and there are many。 Thank you to Edina Adam and Julian Brooks， Net Galley， and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the fascinating life and works of William Blake in this book written as an accompaniment to the upcoming exhibition at the J Paul Getty Museum。 Arranged in a clear order， this book is easy to follow and combines his brilliance as an artist as well as a poet。 Packed with information， this is a wonderful introduction to the tremendous talent of William Blake。 The plates are outstanding and there are many。 Thank you to Edina Adam and Julian Brooks， Net Galley， and Getty Publications for an ARC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
GuyGrand
，
This book is a primer on William Blake and is published in conjunction with a major Blake retrospective to take place at the Getty Center beginning July 2020 （hopefully）。 While the main attraction of a book like this is a chance to experience or revisit Blake's works--ranging from little-seen sketches to selections from some of the best extant copies of his books--it also serves to commemorate the exhibition （via a catalog）， and inform through a series of essays。 I found the essay by Matthew Har This book is a primer on William Blake and is published in conjunction with a major Blake retrospective to take place at the Getty Center beginning July 2020 （hopefully）。 While the main attraction of a book like this is a chance to experience or revisit Blake's works--ranging from little-seen sketches to selections from some of the best extant copies of his books--it also serves to commemorate the exhibition （via a catalog）， and inform through a series of essays。 I found the essay by Matthew Hargreaves， on Blake's reception in America and the history of purchasing， curating， and collecting Blake's work in America to be especially rewarding。 Despite the elements of Blake's art are that are quintessentially English （or even stubbornly insular）， he has long appealed to viewers around the world， among them American transcendentalists and magnates of industry with a mania for collection。 A good place to begin a deep-dive in Blake's singular way of seeing。 。。。more
Beth
，
Very cool to see a bunch of Blake's work accompanied by snippets of biography and historical context。 Wish I could go see the exhibit！ Very cool to see a bunch of Blake's work accompanied by snippets of biography and historical context。 Wish I could go see the exhibit！ 。。。more
Kat Caric
，
An essential art history read！ And a walk through multiple legendary museums at once！William Blake is given great inspection in this Getty Museum publication， with volumes of tidbits you won't find walking around the gallery， and pieces shown herein you won't find easily anywhere。 many pieces have never been seen in the US。 Here is a remarkable collaboration of the Getty along with Tate in London， and also Yale Center for British Art， the Huntington Library collections， and a Blake scholar （Mr。 An essential art history read！ And a walk through multiple legendary museums at once！William Blake is given great inspection in this Getty Museum publication， with volumes of tidbits you won't find walking around the gallery， and pieces shown herein you won't find easily anywhere。 many pieces have never been seen in the US。 Here is a remarkable collaboration of the Getty along with Tate in London， and also Yale Center for British Art， the Huntington Library collections， and a Blake scholar （Mr。 Robert Essick） -- When will you have a chance to visit all these places in succession *and* catch Blake works on display？ （Answer: Never！） This book is a small miracle。Reading a digital advanced reader review copy （so I cannot comment on paper quality nor size of the color prints of artwork contained， but I expect them to be very good）， the artwork appears lush and rich in its full glory。 His full life is examined and his trends given full measure。 Anecdotes and stories abound alongside the art they inspired。 But what is most interesting to me is the probing into his thought process， why he focused on different subject matter， and then incredibly fascinating is the way his work caught its lifeline after his death， in the United States when it had floundered elsewhere， and the spiritualist groups that saved it。 This is relayed in detail， and demonstrates the tough road that even masterful art can sometimes be fated to walk。The most striking wish William Blake declared was his desire that his poetry and art created together should remain together， they were a whole creation。 This book reunites what they could， showing some of his work with poetry even literally upon the work itself， not simply alongside。 I've wondered if any artist did this in my art ponderings， and my question has been answered beautifully。Mr。 Blake believed that all art students should copy and copy and copy again the masters。 He demonstrated that over and over in his work， and the result was a life culmination in advanced age of working on the drawings of Dante's Divine Comedy。 He made himself great， even if that was not recognized in his living lifetime， with perhaps that glimmer only at the end with the Dante work and the young artist group that adored him and promoted him。 He did have patrons， sometimes only barely， and their gift to us is all these centuries later is that his work can be seen， and here can be seen in a new way， with text and stories and pieces brought together for perhaps the first time since he lived。So here is a book for historians and art aficionados to treasure， and for artists to now study， drawings to learn to copy， a man made master by his own hand。 I appreciated this book so much that I pre-ordered a print copy。 Thank you to NetGalley and to Getty Publishing for the chance to peer into these gorgeous pages and take a walk into many museums at once。 I hope for many more museum walks as this from Getty Publishing。 。。。more
J Earl
，
William Blake: Visionary by Edina Adam and Julian Brooks （through the J Paul Getty Museum） is a visually stunning introduction to his work and life。The plates are， as I have come to expect from Getty， wonderful。 This exhibition looks to be more comprehensive than I would have thought and covers a wide range of Blake's work。 The text， in the form of essays， are good without being too detailed。 but then I am familiar with Blake and also don't generally expect exhibition catalogues to be thorough s William Blake: Visionary by Edina Adam and Julian Brooks （through the J Paul Getty Museum） is a visually stunning introduction to his work and life。The plates are， as I have come to expect from Getty， wonderful。 This exhibition looks to be more comprehensive than I would have thought and covers a wide range of Blake's work。 The text， in the form of essays， are good without being too detailed。 but then I am familiar with Blake and also don't generally expect exhibition catalogues to be thorough sources of detailed information， they are meant to introduce the artist and work。 As such， the essays are just fine。 Sources are mentioned for those who really want to know more。If you only know Blake as either an artist or a poet this book is a beautiful way to introduce you to the other aspects of his work。 The book would make a nice coffee table book or display book。 This is one of those book/author combinations that make for great conversations。 Leave the book open to an image next time you have guests over and see where any responses go。 I would recommend this to those who like to own beautiful books that place the art in some context。Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley。 。。。more
F
，
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book。I really enjoyed William Blake: Visionary。 I found it very didactic and enjoyable。 It is very well and clearly organised with a structure that makes sense， and the explanations that precede the illustrations are concise and informative。 I have only studied Blake from a literary perspective， reading his poetry separated from his art， which I've learnt is not as he intended it to be read， so the book's review of Blake's artistic career filled this gap。 Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book。I really enjoyed William Blake: Visionary。 I found it very didactic and enjoyable。 It is very well and clearly organised with a structure that makes sense， and the explanations that precede the illustrations are concise and informative。 I have only studied Blake from a literary perspective， reading his poetry separated from his art， which I've learnt is not as he intended it to be read， so the book's review of Blake's artistic career filled this gap。 Learning about Blake's peculiar insight when designing and completing this work was much more useful than a comment from a literary historian on the value of the prints would have been: he used as a reference not the famous works by the best-known artists everybody else was using but their drafts for the same work， thus "deliberately misconstruing the past" （2020:26）， or， as I would suggest， challenging the canon and sticking with his artistic principles。 Furthermore， I thought the chapter on Blake and the United States was very compelling。 It provides a history to the migration （I'm being generous here） of Blake manuscripts/art to the great art collections in America， between the 19-20th centuries， while also providing a very brief but insightful sociohistorical context for this mass "migration" of artistic material from Britain to the US。 I would absolutely recommend this book for any art lover and I will similarly be recommending my university's library to purchase it for our students。 。。。more
Natalie
，
I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers。William Blake's art work is unsettling and often strange but captivating at the same time。This book is a beautiful display of his work but I found the writing parts quite boring and tedious in many parts。 This book would have been much better with only interesting pieces of knowledge about him and his works of art and in shorter bursts through the book。 I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers。William Blake's art work is unsettling and often strange but captivating at the same time。This book is a beautiful display of his work but I found the writing parts quite boring and tedious in many parts。 This book would have been much better with only interesting pieces of knowledge about him and his works of art and in shorter bursts through the book。 。。。more
Andrew Spink
，
I have always been fascinated by Willian Blake's paintings， so I opened this book with great anticipation。 Last year I had to make a short trip to London （for work） and a highlight was that I managed to squeeze in a visit to the Tate including the special section Blake's works。 The illustrations in the book didn't disappoint， there are a great number of his fascinating etches and water colours。 The imagination and general weirdness of Blake is simply amazing and it was a treat to see that reveal I have always been fascinated by Willian Blake's paintings， so I opened this book with great anticipation。 Last year I had to make a short trip to London （for work） and a highlight was that I managed to squeeze in a visit to the Tate including the special section Blake's works。 The illustrations in the book didn't disappoint， there are a great number of his fascinating etches and water colours。 The imagination and general weirdness of Blake is simply amazing and it was a treat to see that revealed here。I was less enchanted by the text。 The chapter on American collectors was downright boring and on several occasions it was irritatingly superficial。 The book mentions repeatedly that he had an exceptionally good technique as a printer and in one place described the technique。 Unfortunately， rather than actually giving the details， the writer stays on the surface with phrases like 'acid-resistant substance'。 Likewise， his 'personal mysticism' is mentioned a number of times， but nowhere does the text go into details of what his actual beliefs were。 I would have loved to have had more information on that。 In summary， excellent reproduction of his Blake's wonderful paintings， but the writing was dissapointing。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=William Blake: Visionary
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=William Blake: Visionary&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft