Introduction to the Exhibition
The strength of the Gallery's Blake collection lies in its representation of
the artist's last years, in particular his series of watercolours
illustrating Dante's Divine Comedy. They were part of a group of works that
were bought in 1918-20 through the Felton Bequest - one of the Bequest's most
spectacular acquisitions. Since 1988 the collection has been augmented by
important early works - both from Blake's original inventions, as well as his
engravings after other artists. The reproductive engravings remind us that
Blake began his professional career apprenticed to an engraver. The skills
he acquired gave him a degree of technical mastery that allowed him to adapt
and to change the conventions of printmaking in ways that were quite
original. They also provided him with his most important source of income,
meagre though it was. The exhibition was introduced with this group of works.
Individual drawings and prints from our Blake collection have been included
in various exhibitions at the Gallery in the past decade. During this time,
too, selected works from the group have been lent to specialist exhibitions
in Japan (1990) and Spain (1996). However, this exhibition was the first
occasion since 1989 that our Blake collection was displayed in its
entirety. It was the last exhibition of prints and drawings to be held
at the Gallery's St Kilda Road site before its redevelopment.
A note on the display: The works in the exhibition were installed in unbroken series and
clustered, as far as possible, chronologically. The watercolours were hung in
narrative sequence on the outer walls of the room.
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