Four Prints, Morning,Evening, Noon and Night.

William Hogarth 1697 - 1764

Summary

A series of four prints (etching and engraving) titled 'The Four Times of Day' published in 1738 after a series of four paintings by Hogarth from 1736-37. Together they present a satirical snapshot of the society of Hogarth's time - amusing and uncomfortable depictions of life in the streets of London with the vagaries of fashion and relationships between the rich and poor. Unlike his other series, this is not a story of an individual nor is there a consecutive narrative. Instead they present a snapshot of 18th century city society. As well as the four times of day, the four seasons are presented too. 'Evening' was engraved by the French engraver Bernard Baron and the others by Hogarth himself. All four were sold by subscription for 1 guinea. The series was first published in 1738 followed by a second published edition in 1797. A later edition was published by William Heath, London in 1822. 1) "Morning" Hogarth's tour of London begins in Covent Garden in London's West End on a cold winter's day. In the foreground on the right of the image, in front of the facade of St Paul's church, a group of women crowd around a fire as they prepare to set up their stalls at the vegetable market. Directly behind them is the wooden all night drinking den,Tom King's Coffee House. Two drunk men are shown sexually assalting two of the market women. A placard advertises pills to cure venereal disease. The central figure is an elderly woman walking towards the church accompanied by her servant boy carrying her Bible. Despite her faith and wealth, she chooses to ignore the request of a black beggar. 2) "Noon" The scene of the second print is set in Hog Lane in Soho. A group of French Protestant Huguenots are seen outside a Huguenot chapel on the right of the image. Hogarth contrasts them with an overdressed French family in the foreground. On the left of the image is a tavern where a woman, hassled by a man in the upstairs window, throws a dish of food. Below, a young cook maid is being kissed and fondled by a black servant causing her to spill the food she carries too.Beside her, a distressed servant boy has spilt a plate of food which is being eaten by a hungry homeless girl. A street sign for an eating establishment called the Baptist's Head shows John the Baptist's head lying on a platter. Behind this sign is another for a tavern called the Good Woman - where a woman is shown without a head suggesting to be good is associated with a woman's silence. The church spire of St Giles in the Fields can be seen in the distance. 3) "Evening" Here the scene is of a well dressed cross-looking family walking home from Sadler's Wells in Islington, known for its pleasure houses on the edge of London. The family have spent the day at Sadler's Wells Theatre which can be seen on the far left of the image. The pregnant wife, dressed in her best clothes, holds a fan with an image of Venus, the Goddess of Love, attempting to stop her lover Adonis from going hunting. It suggests the wife has commited adultery and the unborn baby may not be her husband's. The horns above the husband's head are a traditional symbol of cuckoldry. Their son is crying behind his parents. In the first state of this print he stands alone. In later states, Hogarth added the figure of a stern sister shouting at her brother. A sign hangs outside a tavern named after the civic philanthropist Sir Hugh Myddleton on the right of the image. Myddleton had been responsible for the clean water shown in the foreground of the print. A cow is being milked in the centre of the image and countryside can be seen in the background. 4) "Night" This nighttime scene is set in an alleyway near Charing Cross, central London. There are tavern signs - the Rummer Tavern on the left and the Earl of Cardigan on the right. There are signs for bagnios, establishments where rooms could be rented by the hour. There is also a sign for a barber's surgeon - a man is having his teeth pulled above the caption 'Shaving, bleeding and teeth drawing'. In a nearby window the barber can be seen shaving the face of a customer. In the foreground, a drunk Freemason thought to be the magistrate Thomas de Veil staggers home on the arm of a fellow Freemason, The scene is considered to be Bonfire Night. Two figures with their backs to the viewer on the right of the image appear to be fighting. They confront the occupants of an overturned coach that has been set on fire. In the lower left corner of the image, there is a link boy who could be hired to light the way home besides a homeless family in a makeshift shelter. Above, a chamber pot is being emptied via an awning on to the head of the drunken Freemason. Behind him, a 'night time soil man' who collected urine for use in the tannery industry is shown emptying urine into a barrel. In the distance is the statue of King Charles looking out over this satirical scene of inequality.