Thenot under Fruit Tree 1821

William Blake made this engraving, Thenot under Fruit Tree, to illustrate a collection of poems called "The Pastorals of Virgil," though his images often radically re-interpreted the texts they accompanied. The rural setting suggests a pastoral idyll, yet Blake's work, produced in England, complicates any simple notion of the countryside as a space of uncomplicated pleasure. Blake was critical of institutions and power structures, and it would be consistent for him to use such imagery to critique the social realities of rural life. The institutions of art in Blake's time largely excluded artists like him, who worked outside the established academic styles. Blake’s idiosyncratic style and his focus on spiritual and imaginative themes, reflect his challenge to the artistic norms of his time. By consulting historical archives and literary sources, we can understand how Blake's art serves as a critique of the social and artistic conventions of his era, reflecting the complex interplay between art, society, and institutions.