Songs of Experience: Nurses Song

Songs of Experience: Nurses Song is a powerful illustration created by William Blake between 1794 and 1825, serving as plate 38 of his seminal illuminated book, Songs of Innocence and of Experience. This particular impression exemplifies Blake's innovative approach to self-publishing, utilizing a demanding relief etching technique. The print was first created using orange-brown ink, which provided the foundational imagery before being meticulously hand-colored. The overall visual effect is heightened by delicate washes of watercolor and subtle touches of shell gold, resulting in a unique combination of mass-produced printmaking and bespoke artistic finishing.

The visual narrative critiques the shift from youthful freedom to the restrictive oversight imposed by authority, a central theme of the Songs of Experience section. Blake renders the figures-primarily the older women (the nurse) and the young girls-within a carefully framed space. In the lower border of the composition, the artist has included stylized vines heavy with large leaves and lush, ripe fruit, often interpreted as symbolizing nature’s abundance contrasting sharply with the suppression of natural joy within the poem’s text. Blake’s masterful use of shadow and color reflects the poem’s movement toward cynicism and disillusionment. This highly important example of British Romantic-era prints resides in the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection, showcasing the enduring visual complexity of Blake’s work. The dual classification as both illuminated manuscript and hand-colored print highlights the unique production methods Blake used, ensuring the individuality of each impression. These early impressions, foundational to the understanding of Blake's poetic vision, often become widely accessible today through public domain initiatives.