Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood

Lorenzo and Isabella

To continue the Keats theme, let’s look at the first painting Millais painted as a member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.  Lorenzo and Isabella is based on Keats’ poem Isabella, or, the Pot of Basil.  I’ve touched on the poem briefly in this post about William Holman Hunt’s painting of the same subject.   Basically, Isabella and Lorenzo fall in love. Her brothers kill Lorenzo. After searching for and finding his body, Isabella buries his head under a plant of Basil. Romantic, no?

As the Pre-Raphaelites often did, they used each other as models:

Dante Gabriel Rossetti:  man drinking from a glass at the end of the table on the right side

William Michael Rossetti:  Lorenzo

Walter Deverell:  brother

F.G. Stephens:  brother

The brother kicking the dog is said to be a bully from the artis’s school days, painted from memory.

Links:

Millais:

Lorenzo and Isabella at The Earthly Paradise

Lorenzo and Isabella at Liverpool Museums

John Millais:  Lorenzo and Isabella at Pre-Raphaelite Art

Keats and his poem:

For gardening enthusiasts:  Isabella and the Pot of Basil at GardenGuides.com

The complete poem at john-keats.com

Oooh, and ArtMagick has the lovely page featuring several paintings based upon Isabella, or, the Pot of Basil

Always loved this painting and considering how young he was at the time – amazing.

As with all of Millais’ paintings, I’m in love with all the little details in this work! The textiles are just fabulous. Ever notice that the nasty brother kicking the dog is also about to squish another dog under the leg of his chair? A very unpleasant fellow.