The Industrious 'Prentice a Favorite, and Entrusted by his Master: Industry and Idleness, plate 4
September 30, 1747
Medium
Etching and engraving; first state of two
Dimensions
sheet: 10 1/4 x 13 9/16 in. (26.1 x 34.4 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(40)
Tags
Art Historical Context
William Hogarth's *The Industrious 'Pr a Favorite, and En by his Master*, plate 4 from the seriesIndustry and Idleness*dated September 30, 7), is a masterful etching and engraving that captures 18th-century London's bustling workshops and moral lessons. This first-state impression, measuring 10 1/4 x 13 9/16 inches, belongs to Hogarth's iconic narrative sequence of 12 prints contrasting the fates of two apprentices: the diligent Francis Goodchild and the lazy Tom Idle. Here, the industrious prentice earns his master's trust amid a lively scene of men, women, and animals at work, symbolizing th...
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...