St. Matthew
1799
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
About the artist
Artist
William Blake
William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter and printmaker.
See the richer artist page1799
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
St. Matthew is a 1799 unspecified by William Blake, a British Romanticism work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
A man in a red robe clutches a book while an angel leans over his shoulder, pointing at the pages. The figures glow against a dark, swirling background, as if lit from within. Blake painted this after seeing visions—he claimed angels and prophets visited him. Most artists of his time ignored his work, but a few collectors paid him to paint exactly what he saw in his mind. To see more of Blake’s strange, glowing figures, look up *William Blake (British, 1757–1827)*.
The energy and awe with which the evangelist Saint Matthew responds to the angel presenting the divinely inspired text echoes William Blake’s attitude toward artistic inspiration. From childhood Blake experienced visions that are reflected in the otherworldliness of his work. While Blake was not embraced by the fine art establishment, a small group of patrons believed in his genius and commissioned works in which his unusual visions had free rein.
Like St. Matthew, William Blake reported having visions of angels throughout his life.
Read the full account in the museum source.
William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter and printmaker.
See the richer artist page
