Evening

Evening is a profound late work by the visionary British artist William Blake, executed sometime between 1820 and 1825. This distinctive piece is classified as a painting, created using the demanding medium of watercolor and chalk applied directly onto a wood support. The combination of these materials demonstrates Blake’s characteristic experimental approach, utilizing the transparency of the watercolor washes alongside the textured opacity provided by the chalk.

Produced during the final years of Blake’s life, this work reflects the spiritual intensity that defined his artistic output throughout the early 19th century, falling specifically within the period 1801 to 1825. Blake often combined religious, literary, and deeply personal mystical sources, translating them into highly symbolic compositions. As a leading figure in British Romanticism, Blake's unique style often rejected the classical realism favored by his contemporaries in favor of emotionally expressive linear intensity and visionary form. The application of media onto the wood grain lends the painting a unique, slightly rough surface quality that enhances its emotional power, giving the entire composition an ethereal and dreamlike resonance consistent with his personal mythology.

Although much of Blake’s work was initially misunderstood by his contemporaries, his stature as a pivotal British artist has grown considerably since his death. This painting, along with many other important works from the era 1801 to 1825, forms a critical part of the collections at the National Gallery of Art. The work remains an essential example of Blake’s visionary output, created just prior to his passing. Due to the age of the work, the original image is generally considered to be in the public domain, which allows the institution to make high-quality images and prints available for academic study and widespread public appreciation.