William Blake: The Age of Romantic Fantasy

A figure dressed in white sits in the centre of the frame with the head resting in their hands. Above them floats a figure in a blue wave, their ankles shackled. To the right, the sun appears over the sea. — William Blake (1757-1827),Plate 4 of ‘Visions of the Daughters of Albion’, c.1795. Purchased with the assistance of a special grant from the National Gallery and donations from the Art Fund, Lord Duveen and others, and presented through the Art Fund 1919. Photo: Tate.

16 April - 19 July 2026
Rooms 6-10 | Tickets from €0-€16

William Blake, a visionary artist and poet, was a defining force in Romanticism. His imaginative and unconventional works continue to inspire today. This exhibition, curated by Tate in partnership with the National Gallery of Ireland, presents a selection of Blake’s most iconic works of art, alongside paintings and drawings by his contemporaries. Blake’s world was one of fantasy, imagination, and the ancient past, filled with fantastical creatures and visions of the underworld, expressed through a wide variety of media. By placing him in context - among the artists he admired and those he inspired - the exhibition offers insight into an era of extraordinary originality and innovation in late-eighteenth and early nineteenth-century art. Featuring over 100 works, including by James Barry (1741–1806), Henry Fuseli (1741–1825), John Hamilton Mortimer (1740–1779), Thomas Rowlandson (1757–1827), and J.M.W. Turner (1775–1851), the show explores how artists responded to a time of revolution and transformation, pushing the boundaries of their art into new imaginative territories.

Organised in collaboration with Tate.

Curated by Anne Hodge, Curator of Prints and Drawings at the National Gallery of Ireland and Alice Insley, Curator of British Art c. 1730 – 1850 at Tate.