The William Blake Gallery San Francisco Presents: William Blake in Color
- Details
- Category: Art, Museums, Galleries
- Published on Sunday, 16 April 2017 13:12
The William Blake Gallery presents William Blake In Color, a selection of plates from the Illuminated Books of William Blake (1951 - 1987) by the Trianon Press for the William Blake Trust. Exhibition Dates: April 22 - July 28, 2017.
The exhibition reinvigorates the current William Blake market, entering over 2500 plates into the forum, as well as never-before-seen personal archives by Arnold Fawcus, the renowned founder of Trianon Press.
Each plate is priced between $50 and $500, and in doing so, The William Blake Gallery seeks to accommodate the widespread and multi-generational interest in Blake—countering the notion that Blake’s work is predominantly reserved for museums, institutions or established collectors. Approximately 50 plates will be on view with access to an additional 2000 in the gallery’s extensive library.
In 1949 the William Blake Trust commissioned the Trianon Press to create facsimiles of the Illuminated Books of William Blake as a means to create deeper public awareness of the artist. Under the direction of Arnold Fawcus, the founder of Trianon Press, the craftsmanship of the books drew critical acclaim.
Fawcus assembled a crew of elderly skilled craftsmen in Paris to perform laborious antiquated printing processes involving collotype and pochoir—a stencil-based technique used to hand-color prints, characterized by crisp lines and brilliant colors; the resulting images have a freshly printed or wet appearance. The near indistinguishable facsimiles mirror Blake's original printing processes between 1789 and 1826. By the late 1980's the Trianon Press facsimiles had themselves become rare books.
In 2016 San Francisco-based antiquarian bookseller John Windle seized the rare opportunity of acquiring every single Blake Trust Trianon Press book as well as a collection of personal notes and proofs by Fawcus created during the monumental printing initiative.
As the holder of the largest collection of available Blake work in North America, Windle creates a new opportunity in the Blake market by introducing the massive influx of prints to the public. The William Blake Gallery celebrates this release with William Blake in Color, and continues the Blake Trust’s mission of broadening awareness among new generations of Blake enthusiasts.
Image left: William Blake, Songs of Innocence and of Experience, Frontispiece and Title Page Trianon Press facsimile, 1955
John Windle, founder of The William Blake Gallery says:
Recently I was fortunate enough to acquire every Blake Trust Trianon Press book. Now, with the acquisition of some 2500 loose plates deriving from virtually all of Blake's major works, we can offer a greater accessibility to the new enthusiasts of Blake's iconography. We hope that bringing this opportunity to the public at large will help spread the passion we have for William Blake, the most iconic poet, printer, and prophet in the history of British art.
Highlighted works include:
Frontispiece and Title Page from Songs of Innocence and of Experience
Plates selected from Jerusalem
Plates selected from The Book of Urizen
Colored Plates selected from The Book of Job
Plates selected from Blake’s Water-Colour
Designs for the Poems of Thomas Gray
Exhibition Hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 11 am - 5 pm
William Blake Gallery, 49 Geary, San Francisco, CA | www.williamblakegallery.com
About the William Blake Gallery
The William Blake Gallery, a new exhibition space in San Francisco dedicated to works created by the massively influential 19th century poet, artist, and engraver. The gallery is the largest of its kind devoted solely to the artist, as well as the largest collection in the world of pieces by Blake available for purchase.
After 50 years in the book trade and 43 years operating John Windle Antiquarian Bookseller, longtime rare book dealer, John Windle, opened William Blake Gallery in October, 2016, within San Francisco’s historic 49 Geary building. The first physical space exclusively dedicated to Blake's work in over two hundred years, The William Blake Gallery houses hundreds of original Blake pieces alongside thousands of reproductions of the artist’s own writings and artwork.
About John Windle Antiquarian Bookseller
John Windle Antiquarian Bookseller offers an exceptional selection of rare books and manuscripts from medieval times through the twentieth century. Located in downtown San Francisco, the shop specializes in medieval illuminated and text manuscripts, illustrated books and fine bindings from the 15th through the 20th century, and children's books from 1750 to 1950. They have served an international clientele of private collectors, libraries, and institutions for over 40 years.
About William Blake the Artist
Widely considered to be one of the greatest contributors to the Western world of literature and art, William Blake’s lifetime of otherworldly work was motivated by mystic visions and spiritual revelations. Creating hundreds of artworks -- from engraved illustrations and illuminated books to original writings and watercolors -- his deeply unique style remains endlessly enigmatic and highly sought after. Favored by an eclectic groups of fans and collectors, Blake remains one of the only seminal Romantic artists whose work is still occasionally available to collect.
Exhibition Hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 11 am - 5 pm
William Blake Gallery, 49 Geary, San Francisco, CA | www.williamblakegallery.com
