Then Went Satan Forth from the Presence of the Lord ... The Book of Job no 5. by William Blake, 1757-1827

William Blake, 1757-1827
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Then Went Satan Forth from the Presence of the Lord ... The Book of Job no 5.

Original engraving in black ink. 1824/25. With the engraved signature in the plate: 'W Blake inventor & sculp.' With Blake's address and the publication date 1825. From the 'proof' first issue 1825, with the proof mark lower right. No 5 in the series: The Book of Job. From the edition of 65 proofs on French wove. There were also 150 proofs on chine appliqué and 100 ordinary impressions on Whatman.

Ref: Binyon - Blake Engravings no 110. Bindman -Blake 630(5) Extremely fine sparkling first issue impression. On pale cream wove 'French' paper. Excellent condition. Full (?) margins. Sheet: 15 3/4 x 10 3/4ins. Plate: 8 1/2 x 6 5/8ins (216x169mm)

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The series of 21 compositions which William Blake engraved between 1823 and 1825 on the theme of The Book of Job are a crowning achievement of his work as a line engraver, and they remain amongst the great masterpieces of the whole history of engraving as an artistic medium.

Blake started to engrave in the 1770's, during his apprenticeship, and in the following years he found that engraving after the designs of other painters, often for commercial publishers, was one way in which he could provide himself with an income. In the 1790's he began to use engraving as a medium of personal artistic expression. He moved away from the tight controlled line which the establishment required, and in Bible themes such as those taken from Ezekiel, and in first ideas from Job, he started to use the flow and bite of the line in a totally new and expressive manner.

Blake was a visionary artist, inspired by the great old testament themes to create images which speak through the rhythm and movement of forms, through sweeping line, and compositional arrangement. In engraving he found a way of linking all these elements and, through the power of incision and bite, of intensifying the manner in which they speak to our inner soul. The series of engravings on the theme of The Book of Job show his art at a pinnacle of achievement. The story is not only one of the most dramatic in the Bible, but it was also of great symbolic importance to him. The compositions express an idea central to his own life - the inner struggle in Man between the opposed powers of good and evil.

In the Job compositions Blake uses the symbolism of left and right. On the right (the left as reversed in the engraving) is the Spiritual -or the Good - whilst on the other side is the Material world - the evil. In each composition the conflict between these forces is investigated. The way in which the forms interact, through shape and line, underlines this central conflict in Blake's being, and in Mankind. Even the shapes and patterns of the surrounding texts are used to heighten the visual effect of the images.