Framed Mezzotint print of Midsummer Night's Dream after Sir Edwin Landseer
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Object number2019.00005
TitleFramed Mezzotint print of Midsummer Night's Dream after Sir Edwin Landseer
Creator Samuel Cousins (printer), Sir Edwin Henry Landseer (artist)
DescriptionA framed Mezzotint print of 'Midsummer Night's Dream' by Samuel Cousins (1801-1887), after the painting by Sir Edwin Henry Landseer (1802-1873). Commissioned by Isambard Kingdom Brunel for his Shakespeare Room. The print is signed by Landseer in pencil.
The National Gallery of Victoria Website describes the painting as illustrating "a scene from William Shakespeare’s famous comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream. We see Titania, Queen of the Fairies, at the moment when, drugged with a love potion, she becomes enchanted with the artisan Bottom, who has been magically turned into an ass. The painting was commissioned from Landseer by the wealthy industrialist Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806–59), Chief Engineer of Britain’s Great Western Railway and one of the nineteenth century’s greatest engineers and inventors." The museum also states" When the author Lewis Carroll once saw the painting it inspired him to create the character of the White Rabbit for his children’s book, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland." While we haven't seen a source which verifies this specific inspiration a diary of Carroll's states "Called at Ryman's to see "Titania" painted by Sir E. Landseer. There are some wonderful points in it, the ass's head and the white rabbit especially" see object file for copies of these sources.
Production date 1851 - 1873
Production period19th century
Object nameprint
Object categoryart
Techniqueprinted, handcrafted
Dimensions
- width: 1170 mm
height: 870 mm
width: 900 mm
height: 580 mm
width: 860 mm
height: 520 mm