The Circle of Corrupt Officials: The Devils Mauling Each Other 1820 - 1832

This is William Blake’s engraving, "The Circle of Corrupt Officials: The Devils Mauling Each Other." Made without a date, it presents a chaotic scene rendered through dense, wiry lines that convey torment and struggle. The composition is dramatically split between the earthly and the infernal. Above, two figures stand calmly on a precipice, while below, winged devils writhe in a tumultuous sea. Blake uses line and form to create a sense of swirling energy, emphasizing the chaos of the scene. The figures, contorted and anguished, are rendered with dynamic lines that highlight their muscular tension and emotional distress. Blake's work often critiques institutional corruption and moral decay, ideas that are visually communicated here through the mauling devils and the division of the composition. Blake invites us to contemplate the destructive forces of corruption and the pain it inflicts, a theme he conveys through expressive lines and a dynamic interplay of forms.