Drawing Shakespeare

As we welcome Folger Theatre’s Romeo and Juliet, we take a look back at some intriguing and varied highlights of our past looks at the play.

Drawing by Paul Glenshaw of the Folger bas-relief depicting a scene from Henry IV, Part 1 This is the tenth post in a series by artist Paul Glenshaw about drawing the bas-reliefs by sculptor John Gregory on the front of…

In this Folger bas-relief, sculptor John Gregory shows Hamlet facing the sources of his torment: his father’s murder and his mother’s betrayal.

Artist Paul Glenshaw writes about drawing the bas-relief of Richard III by sculptor John Gregory on the front of the Folger Shakespeare Library building.

Artist Paul Glenshaw writes about drawing the bas-relief of King Lear by sculptor John Gregory on the front of the Folger Shakespeare Library building.

Artist Paul Glenshaw describes drawing the Folger bas-relief of “Julius Caesar,” in which assassins with their knives start to turn away as Caesar dies. He pairs the image with a painting by Jean-Léon Gérôme at the Walters Art Museum in…

Artist Paul Glenshaw describes drawing John Gregory’s bas-relief of Macbeth, the three witches, and their cauldron, with a focus on the vast cloud of smoke made from stone. “I realized as I drew it that the smoke was as much…

Paul Glenshaw draws “The Merchant of Venice” bas-relief from the series by sculptor John Gregory at the Folger Shakespeare Library — and finds depictions of the same scene with some similar elements in the Folger collection.

Artist Paul Glenshaw describes Romeo, Juliet, and the Nurse, poised at a key moment in his drawing of “Romeo and Juliet” from a Folger bas-relief.

Artist Paul Glenshaw takes a close look at Titania and Bottom as he draws the scene from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” depicted on a Folger bas-relief.

Paul Glenshaw writes about drawing the Folger’s Shakespeare bas-reliefs, which were created by John Gregory and depict scenes from nine plays.