Johann Kaspar Lavater
Primary
William Blake
(London, England, 1757–1827)
NationalityEnglish, Europe
Date1787
MediumEngraving
DimensionsSheet: 15 1/16 × 12 5/16 in. (38.2 × 31.3 cm)
Additional Dimension: 14 7/16 × 11 7/8 in. (36.6 × 30.2 cm)
Additional Dimension: 14 7/16 × 11 7/8 in. (36.6 × 30.2 cm)
Credit LineBlanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin, The Leo Steinberg Collection, 2002.1222
Keywords
Rights Statement
Collection AreaPrints and Drawings
Object number2002.1222
On View
Not on viewBlake trained and was first active as a conventional reproductive engraver. This print is of special interest because of the sitter’s identity and the impression’s quality. Lavater was a Swiss theologian better known for his writings on physiognomy – the interpretation of personality from facial characteristics. Blake records his traits in a fashionable Neoclassical profile, made distinctive by its large scale and severe modeling. Vivid, the impression is an apparently unique proof before letters.
Exhibitions
William Blake
1823-1825