Liberality and Desire
November 29, 1788
Medium
Hand-colored etching and aquatint
Dimensions
Plate: 14 3/4 × 10 11/16 in. (37.5 × 27.2 cm) Sheet: 14 15/16 × 11 1/8 in. (38 × 28.3 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1959
Accession Number
59.533.266
Tags
Art Historical Context
Created in 1788 by the celebrated British caricaturist Thomas Rowlandson and published by S. W. Fores, *Liberality and Desire* is a hand-colored etching and aquatint that exemplifies the lively satirical print culture of Georgian London. Rowlandson’s distinctive style—marked by fluid lines, exaggerated figures, and witty social observation—made him one of the most popular graphic artists of his day. The medium allowed for affordable, widely distributed images that reached a broad audience beyond the elite. The work’s title and tags hint at a humorous commentary on human nature, contrasting ge...
About the Artist
Thomas Rowlandson|S. W. Fores · 1756–1827
Thomas Rowlandson (1757–1827) was an English artist and caricaturist whose satirical watercolors and prints captured the social life of Georgian Britain with unparalleled wit and technical mastery. Alongside James Gillray, he is recognized as one of the greatest British graphic artists, and his distinctive flowing line and keen observations have made his work integral to understanding late 18th an...