Adam and Eve

This is the first in a series of ten paintings on the biblical story of Adam and Eve, made in 1899 by the Scottish painter and engraver William Strang. They were commissioned by the brewer Laurence Hodson as a frieze for his library at Compton Hall, near Wolverhampton. The strong contours and pale colours give the scene a modern and a dream-like quality. The Eve cycle was admired by the artist Walter Sickert and by the younger generation of London art students. Oil on canvas, Tate Gallery, London.