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The Bruiser

Artist/Maker (English, 1697–1764)
Date1763
MediumEtching and engraving
DimensionsImage: 14 15/16 × 11 3/8 in. (37.9 × 28.9 cm)
Sheet: 24 13/16 × 18 7/8 in. (63 × 48 cm)
Credit LineAnnie A. Wager Bequest
Object number1975.248
Status
Not on view
More Information
This print is a critique of the clergyman and journalist Charles Churchill, who wrote a scathing attack of Hogarth. Hogarth depicts Churchill as a drunken performing bear leaning against a club inscribed with “lyes” (lies). Meanwhile, a dog representing Hogarth urinates on a copy of Churchill’s “Epistle to Hogarth.” At the bottom right, Hogarth includes an engraving within an engraving depicting himself whipping Churchill (the bear) as well as the politician John Wilkes (the monkey), who had also criticized him.
Exhibition History
Wit and Wisdom: Political and Social Satire in the Prints of Hogarth, Goya, and Daumier
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (July 27, 2022 - December 23, 2022 )
Collections
  • European