Hot and Cold 1908

Walter Crane made this illustration, "Hot and Cold," using watercolor and ink, sometime around the turn of the 20th century. It depicts a fable of Aesop about a satyr who is confused and distrustful of a man who blows on his hands to warm them and then on his soup to cool it down. This image is a comment on ‘double dealing,’ as the text notes, and it speaks to the cultural anxieties of the period in which it was made. Crane was a socialist and his illustrations often addressed social themes, particularly the corruption of the ruling classes. The contrast between the natural, innocent satyr and the duplicitous man can be seen as a critique of Victorian society and the perceived hypocrisy of its leaders. To understand this work fully, we need to consider the history of illustrated books and the role they played in shaping public opinion in late 19th-century England.