Illustration to Milton`s Paradise Lost 1807

William Blake created this illustration to Milton’s Paradise Lost, rendered in watercolor and ink, using delicate lines and ethereal washes of color, evoking a dreamlike vision of the biblical Eden. The composition is structured by a symmetrical arrangement, with Adam and Eve seated on the left, mirrored by a radiant, winged figure on the right. This visual symmetry belies the disruption of innocence by the serpent coiled around the Tree of Knowledge at the center, which introduces a diagonal thrust that destabilizes the harmony. Blake uses linear forms to define shape, while the washes of color soften the starkness and introduce an otherworldly quality. The arc formed by the foliage overhead and the flowing drapery behind the angel frame the scene, creating a visual enclosure that suggests both protection and confinement. Blake's Paradise is not merely a setting but a symbolic space in which the drama of human potential unfolds through carefully structured formal elements.