First Book of Urizen pl. 21 c. 1796 - 1818

Curator: Oh, what a haunting image. Blake's "First Book of Urizen, plate 21"—part of his illuminated books, held here at the Tate. He probably made it sometime in the 1790s. Editor: Absolutely gothic! Look at that figure, cloaked in despair, leaning against… what is that dark mass? It feels like a visual scream. Curator: That mass is probably a cave. And he is Urizen, the embodiment of reason struggling with his creations, carrying what looks like a blood-red sun bound with his own veins. Editor: Bound? Yes, exactly! The lines radiating from that orb are not just rays; they’re chains! It's like his own passions are trapping him. Such a clever visual metaphor. Curator: Blake was a genius at packing complex ideas into his images. He saw the world as poetry and truth fighting against the cold, hard facts. Urizen isn't evil, just tragically misguided. Editor: I see that struggle, that raw tension. Blake makes you feel it, not just understand it. A very powerful plate. Curator: It is. Blake reminds us that pure reason divorced from imagination becomes its own kind of hell. Editor: A poignant reminder indeed.