“On this day in 1820: William Blake draws Pindar the greek poet and lais the courtesan (visionary Heads) for John Varley (Part I)”

Erle, S. (2020) “On this day in 1820: William Blake draws Pindar the greek poet and lais the courtesan (visionary Heads) for John Varley (Part I)”. BARS blog.

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Abstract

Pindar (died c. 439BC) was a well-known, now canonical, lyric poet in Ancient Greece. Blake, who mentions ‘Pindar’ in passing in An Island in the Moon (1784), would have deepened his knowledge when illustrating Thomas Gray’s poems (c.1797-98). He would have been familiar with the apocryphal stories that include Corinna, a serious rival, and possibly one-time teacher, of Pindar. The work of this obscure poet survives in fragments and her life-story is tied to Pindar’s. Lais the courtesan, however, bears no connection to Pindar and her life-dates are even more uncertain as she left no trace in history. Like Corinna, Lais was a confident woman; she interrupted Blake’s drawing session and, according to Allan Cunningham, forced Blake to draw her rather than Corinna.

Item Type:	Article
Divisions:	School of Humanities
Depositing User:	Dr Sibylle Erle
Date Deposited:	15 Dec 2020 11:23
Last Modified:	15 Dec 2020 11:24
URI:	https://bgro.repository.guildhe.ac.uk/id/eprint/794

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