Mrs. Cowper, Mother of the Poet

The print Mrs. Cowper, Mother of the Poet was executed by the visionary English artist William Blake in 1802. This work is an example of the artist’s extensive commercial activities as an engraver in the United Kingdom during the Romantic period, supplementing his more famous illuminated books. The piece is rendered using the painstaking technique of engraving on copperplate, classifying it formally as a fine art print.

The subject is Ann Cowper (née Donne), the mother of the renowned poet William Cowper. While Blake is primarily remembered for his complex mythological subjects and revolutionary approach to book illustration, his professional practice often involved producing portraits and standard designs for publishers, such as this work. In this particular image, Blake captures the likeness of Mrs. Cowper with the delicate line work characteristic of contemporary portrait engraving. The detail and careful cross-hatching demonstrate Blake’s technical mastery of the demanding engraving process, essential for ensuring the reproducibility of the image as a key component of the early 19th-century publishing industry.

As a historical work from the early 1800s, the print provides insight into the cultural and literary connections prevalent in the United Kingdom at the time of its creation. This impression, now part of the permanent collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, represents a significant example of Blake’s non-prophetic output. Because many early prints and reproductive artworks of this era are now in the public domain, pieces like this continue to be studied for their historical context and technical precision.