Blake v Stothard

Last December I previewed Tate Britain's attempt to celebrate the 200th anniversary of William Blake's only solo exhibition (CLICK). The show opens on 20 April, although Tate's website hasn't woken up to this fact at the time of writing. The above painting is Blake's Canterbury Pilgrims, a late addition to the show. It will be displayed with another addition: Thomas Stothard's painting of the same scene, which Blake's publisher friend Robert Hartley Cromek chose for publication as a print in preference to Blake's version, much to Blake's annoyance. I think Blake's version is far superior. Click the title link to see which version you prefer.