9 October 2007

The William Blake Archive is pleased to announce the publication of an electronic edition of Blake's illustrations to John Milton's Comus. This group of eight water colors was acquired, and probably commissioned, by Thomas Butts in about 1815. These designs, now in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, are presented in our Preview mode, one that provides all the features of the Archive except Image Search and Inote (our image annotation program).

Blake had produced a suite of Comus water colors for the Rev. Joseph Thomas in 1801. This earlier group, previously published in the Archive, pictures the same eight subjects as the set presented here. There are, however, many differences between the two suites in motifs and in the portrayals of characters from the poem. The Thomas designs show strong outlines and relatively subdued colors; in contrast, the Butts designs include more interior modeling and an emphasis on complex surfaces created with small brush strokes.

In his Comus designs, as is usual in his work as an illustrator of other poets' writings, Blake paid close attention to the text, but this disciplined approach did not preclude his own interpretations. For example, Milton ends his masque with joyous dance and song, but Blake ends his illustrations on a more serious note, as indicated by the facial expressions of all six figures. His selection of poetic passages to illustrate reveals, in itself, Blake's emphasis on unusual states of consciousness, including trances and visions.

With this publication, the Archive contains five of Blake's nine series of water colors illustrating Milton's poetry: both sets of Comus designs, the Thomas set of illustrations to "On the Morning of Christ's Nativity," the illustrations to "L'Allegro" and "Il Penseroso," and the Paradise Regained designs. It is our intention to publish in the near future the remaining four series: three sets illustrating Paradise Lost and the Butts set of designs for "On the Morning of Christ's Nativity."

As always, the William Blake Archive is a free site, imposing no access restrictions and charging no subscription fees. The site is made possible by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the continuing support of the Library of Congress, and the cooperation of the international array of libraries and museums that have generously given us permission to reproduce works from their collections in the Archive.

Morris Eaves, Robert N. Essick, and Joseph Viscomi, editors
Ashley Reed, project manager, William Shaw, technical editor
The William Blake Archive