Paintings and Illustrations of Keats's Poems

Keats's poems have appealed to artists and illustrators, particularly from the 1840's through the 1930s. Three poems have received the most attention--Endymion, Isabella; or, the Pot of Basil, and The Eve of St. Agnes. According to Richard Altick, at least twenty paintings and illustrations have been made of each of these poems. Keats's appeal for painters and illustrators is a tribute to how vivid and sensual his imagery is and how his poems stimuate the imagination of his readers. There are other reasons why painters and illustrators were drawn to him: he wrote about art and artists and was friendly with many artists; also the publication of his collected works in 1840 and of a biography in 1848 aroused a general interest in Keats and helped to establish his position as one of England's greatest poets.

As a Web project, Renzo Roblodowski illustrated three of Keats's poems, drew Keats listening to a nightingale in the garden of his friend Brown, and also made a drawing of Ophelia. They are mounted as thumbnails in an art gallery on this Website. To view his illustrations full size, click on the thumbnail or on the filename underneath the thumbnail in Renzo's Art Gallery.