After
December 15, 1736
Medium
Engraving; second state of three
Dimensions
sheet: 15 13/16 x 12 11/16 in. (40.1 x 32.2 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1932
Accession Number
32.35(146)
Tags
Art Historical Context
William Hogarth's *After* (1736), a masterful engraving from the second state three, captures a moment of disheveled regret in an intimate bedroom setting. Created in the heart of 18th-century, this print forms part of Hogarth's iconic "Before and After" pair, a moralistic narrative warning against the fleeting temptations of seduction. The scene unfolds with a tousled man and woman amid the chaos of discarded clothes, flickering candlelight, and a watchful dog—Hogarth's signature touch for injecting wry humor and symbolism into everyday vice. As a pioneer of satirical printmaking, Hogarth re...
About the Artist
William Hogarth · 1697–1764
William Hogarth (1697-1764) was an English painter, printmaker, and pictorial satirist who became the first great English-born artist to attract admiration abroad. Born into poverty in London, the son of a failed schoolmaster who was imprisoned for debt, Hogarth's early experiences with the harsh realities of 18th-century urban life profoundly shaped his artistic vision. After apprenticing with si...