H Beard Print Collection
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From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
21
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
James Gillray’s 1797 print shows a large, grinning man lounging in a chair. He’s dressed in fine clothes and holds playing cards, while tiny figures scurry around him. This is satire—Gillray mocked British prime minister William Pitt as a lazy giant. The joke’s in the scale. Pitt looks bigger than the room itself. Gillray used sharp lines and exaggerated sizes to make the point clear. Check out Gillray, James next.
