William HogarthEnglish, 1697–1764Paul Before Felix
Can I see it?
Not on view at present
Where is “Paul Before Felix” now? Collection: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago. Not on view at present. Checked September 29, 2026.
Chicago, United States
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the work
Around 1747 William Hogarth completed a series of history paintings that were much more serious in tone than the satirical works on which he had built his fame. This drawing and Moses Brought to Pharaoh’s Daughter (2013.951) were both likely made after those paintings as studies for engravings. Paul before Felix, showing the apostle’s self-defense, was commissioned for the chapel of Lincoln’s Inn, where lawyers were admitted to the bar. Moses was similarly appropriate for its location, the London Foundling’s Hospital, as it shows the prophet’s mother reluctantly giving him up for adoption.
Art Institute of ChicagoCC BY 4.0
Details
- Accession number
- 2011.641
In the catalog
Sources
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Image: Art Institute of Chicago — CC0
In the life of William Hogarth
The whole life1712–1764 · Workplace
London
1749
A country house in Chiswick
In 1749 Hogarth bought a country retreat in Chiswick — now Hogarth’s House, a museum — and spent time there for the rest of his life; his main home remained the house in Leicester Fields (now Leicester Square).
1753
The treatise “The Analysis of Beauty”
In 1753 Hogarth published the treatise “The Analysis of Beauty”, in which he declared the S-shaped “line of beauty” — a serpentine line that conveys life and movement — the basis of harmony, and made it his emblem. His adherents praised the book as a fine statement on aesthetics, while enemies and rivals such as Paul Sandby mocked its obscurities and minor errors in endless caricatures.
