Night

"Night," created by William Hogarth in 1738, is a significant example of British satirical printmaking from the period between 1726 to 1750. Executed as an etching combined with engraving on laid paper, this work demonstrates the artist's technical mastery in creating detailed, highly textured scenes for mass distribution. Hogarth frequently utilized the medium of prints to disseminate his biting visual commentaries on 18th-century London society and its excesses.

The print belongs to Hogarth's influential series, The Four Times of Day, where each image represents a distinct period characterized by specific social activities, moral hazards, and urban chaos. In Night, the artist portrays the disorder associated with late hours in the city, typically depicting drunken coachmen, collapsing buildings, or other forms of municipal and moral decay. The composition is typically complex and crowded, employing dramatic contrasts between light and deep shadow achieved through careful layering of etched lines and heavier engraving work.

This visual narrative style is characteristic of British art during the middle of the 18th century and allowed Hogarth to reach a broad audience. By offering widely accessible prints, he cemented his status as a central figure in graphic satire, criticizing everything from corruption and fashion to political upheaval.

The enduring technical detail and social resonance of this work solidify Hogarth’s reputation as a key innovator who elevated graphic arts to a new critical level. This important piece of British printmaking currently resides in the collection of the National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. Given the work's historical importance, high-resolution reproductions of these influential prints are often made available through public domain initiatives, ensuring Hogarth's trenchant observations continue to reach contemporary audiences worldwide.