Fuseli created the small, strikingly colourful scene for John Boydell’s Shakespeare Gallery. In 1786, Boydell, an engraver, began collecting paintings depicting Shakespeare’s work by famous artists, which became widely disseminated as prints. Fuseli was represented there with nine works. As if on stage, he depicts the moment when Lear casts out Cordelia, the only one of his daughters who truly loves him. The commanding figures with their powerful movements show Fuseli’s admiration for the paintings of Michelangelo.