The Creation 1825 - 1826

This is William Blake’s engraving, "The Creation," made around 1823. With delicate lines etched into the metal plate, Blake constructs a visionary world that feels both ancient and strikingly modern. Blake arranges the composition into horizontal registers. The top shows radiant figures amidst stars, their uplifted arms suggestive of divine power and the dawn of consciousness. Below, an elder figure with a flowing beard mediates between the celestial and terrestrial realms, positioned over another group of figures kneeling in what appears to be either supplication or contemplation. Blake’s use of line to define form creates figures with a sculptural presence, yet they are integrated into a fluid, dynamic space. In the margins, Blake includes text and symbols, framing the central image and inviting the viewer to consider the relationship between the visual and the textual. Blake destabilizes fixed meanings through visual and textual interplay. His art invites ongoing interpretation of creation, existence, and the divine.