This etching is the first illustration from 'The boy who left home to learn fear' tale. The design was taken from a drawing Hockney made of the library of the art collector Sheridan Dufferin’s house in Ireland. Although not originally intended to be part of the Grimm project, Hockney decided it was the perfect opening image for this tale. It is considered to be the masterpiece of the series.

This is one of 39 etchings that Hockney created for the series 'Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm'. The etching plates were hand-drawn by David Hockney in London between May and November 1969, proofed by Maurice Payne and printed by Piet Clement on W.S.Hodgkinson paper. Published by the Petersburg Press in association with the Kasmin Gallery in 1970.

For this series Hockney selected six stories from the 220 by the Brothers Grimm, which he'd delighted in since childhood. These include 'The Little Sea Hare', 'Fundevogel', 'Rapunzel', 'The Boy who left Home to learn Fear', 'Old Rinkrank' and 'Rumpelstilzchen'. Hockney stated, "They're fascinating, the little stories, told in a very very simple, direct, straightforward language and style, it was this simplicity that attracted me. They cover quite a strange range of experience, from the magical to the moral."