William Blake's Apocalyptic Red Dragon Watercolors

Between 1805 and 1810, William Blake created over 100 ink and watercolor Bible illustrations for patron Thomas Butts, including several versions of The Great Red Dragon from the Book of Revelations. The dragon, representing Satan, has seven heads and ten horns, and its tail sweeps a third of the stars from heaven. In one version at the Brooklyn Museum (1803-1805), the dragon looms over a vulnerable woman. Another version at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC (1805) shows the woman bathed in light with wings, mirroring the dragon in a duality of light and dark. Blake, educated at home in London, experienced mystical visions from age four and developed a relief etching technique to combine text and images. He self-published illuminated poetry and opposed institutional religion, advocating sexual freedom. His work influenced the Pre-Raphaelites, Jackson Pollock, Bob Dylan, Allen Ginsberg, and Philip Pullman. Thomas Harris's novel Red Dragon features a killer obsessed with Blake's painting, adapted into a 2002 film. Blake's images remain culturally resonant, urging viewers to use imagination for redemption.