Edgar

Description

John Hamilton Mortimer’s Twelve Heads series of etchings depicting Shakespearian characters exemplifies the subjects’ heightened thought and passion. Three of the Heads include Caliban, a loyal but unruly savage from The Tempest; Edgar, the son of Gloucester who feigns madness in King Lear; and the poet played by Theseus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Their intense expressions and the oval cropping draw the viewer’s focus into the theatrical action that the prints reference. The accompanying excerpts tie the characters to a particular scene from their respective plays, blending written and visual art.

Edgar

John Hamilton Mortimer

May 20, 1775; published 1809

Accession Number

155620

Medium

Etching on cream wove paper

Dimensions

Plate: 40 × 32.1 cm (15 3/4 × 12 11/16 in.); Sheet: 59.6 × 43.8 cm (23 1/2 × 17 1/4 in.)

Classification

etching

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

Mary S. Adams Endowment