The Spiritual Form of Pitt Guiding Behemoth

The Spiritual Form of Pitt Guiding Behemoth is a delightful tempera and gold on canvas painting by William Blake from 1805. It provides another example of the artist's exceptional handling of figurative art.

In viewing this artwork we can immediately spot a single main figure who stands with their arms open wide, looking out across to our right hand side. The young woman is dressed in a long, elaborate dress which decorates the central part of this scene. Behind her is some decorative furniture, similar to the mounted chair that a royal might use. We then find a plethora of activity behind her, with several figures hard at work and further detail continuing into the distance. The original piece, which now resides at the Tate, is relatively dark in both mood and tone, making it hard to spot many details in a precise manner. This may well have been to do with the effects of time, and the piece may have been much brighter when completed by Blake back in 1805. Light damage has impacted many of his watercolours, sadly, but its location today in this prestigious gallery should ensure its protection for future generations, and potentially even a refurbishment at some point. See also a related artwork from Blake, titled The Spiritual Form of Nelson Guiding Leviathan.

This artwork was produced using a combination of tempera and ground gold. This was a popular method in the Renaissance and for a few centuries prior to that, but certainly not so during the 18th and 19th century when Blake was doing similar. The reason for this Englishman to return to olden ways may have been a desire to connect with artists from the past, and the content involved in this painting could easily have been from the 15th or 16th century. Blake was also an ambitious and open minded artist who tried out all manner of techniques across his lifetime, and this was just another of his artistic adventures which appeared time and time again throughout his career. Those interested in the traditional techniques of egg tempera with gold in combination might appreciate the work of Duccio di Buoninsegna, from around the 13th century.

This tempera artwork can today be found in the Tate Collection, where it sits alongside some of the most important British art in history. Visitors to some of the organisation's galleries will come across the real artistic gems, but there is also some artists from abroad featured too, particularly so within their more modern displays. One can select between the Tate Modern and Tate Britain, depending on your artistic preferences, with the crossover being around the Impressionist era in the mid 19th century. Blake himself naturally fits more into the Tate Britain display where you might also find some classics from the Pre-Raphaelite era as well as a number of prints and drawings from related artists who may themselves have looked up to Blake themselves.