Hogarth

I have recently been researching William Hogarth (1697–1764) and have found his work very relevant to my practice. I admire the way he uses humour and satire to create narrative and social commentary.

After researching the life of Hogarth I have become increasingly interested in his politics and personality. Specifically his hostile opinions serounding Europe and his strong sense of patriotism, I found this negative view still very present and relevant to todays. I find this very interesting and enjoy finding reoccurrences in history and playing with juxtapositions of historical time periods.

My favourite part of his work is the way he incorporates many hidden jokes and references within one image and this is something I wish to replicate in my work. His paintings often have one overriding idea and then within that image there are many subtle references and jokes. For example in the painting "An Election Entertainment" (fig.1) the most obvious reference is the comparison of the Whig party conference to Da Vinci's "Last Supper". Then within the image there are many details all carefully considered and relevant to Hogarth's time. Although I find this amusing I most like how he has used this composition from art history as a platform to satire current events to his time.