Mychael Barratt - The Shakespeare Prints

I have a fascination with Shakespeare’s plays and find that they provide me
with endless sources of inspiration. ‘All the World’s a Stage II’ depicts
Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre circa 1600 and the bard himself is on the
street desperately trying to keep hold of the scripts for his two lost plays
‘Cardenio’ and ‘Love’s Labour’s Won’. There are references which are
either obvious or quite cryptic to all 37 of his existing plays. I have included
the swan for my friend Jane Arrowsmith who told me that one flew over the
rebuilt Globe Theatre during its first performance.
‘O for a Muse of Fire’ is a 26 plate homage to William Shakespeare done
in the manner of an Edward Lear alphabet (hence my not missing an
opportunity to include an animal). I was writing 'Intaglio - a guide to
traditional printmaking techniques' for the publisher A & C Black while I
was working on this print and included an example of every one of the
techniques described.