One of the benefits of an active reading life is that when you read not only for pleasure but for improvement, then similar themes in different authors’ works seem to just float to you, unbidden, like synergy. Today I read e.e. cummings’ Love is a Place love is a place & through this place of … Read more
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow, Creeps in this petty pace from day to day, To the last syllable of recorded time; And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death… —Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 5, lines 17-28) I’ve just read Variety’s review of the new adaptation of the Scottish play. I can … Read more
Dante Gabriel Rossetti had a lifelong enthusiasm for wombats and #WombatFriday is a fun way to celebrate that. Yes it is silly, but it also encourages participation. From the beginning, my favorite thing about Wombat Friday is how many people have come along for the ride. I guess my claim to fame is that on … Read more
While from the quivering bough the bird expands His wings. And lo! thy spirit understands (from A Vision of Fiammetta, Dante Gabriel Rossetti) Birds appear frequently in both Rossetti’s paintings and poems. In the late 1860s, after his wife Elizabeth Siddal’s death, Rossetti began to be plagued by health and mental problems. A chaffinch landed … Read more
The Hours Before is a mysterious and exciting novel by Robert Stephen Parry. Set in the Belle Epoque, I was hooked from the first page. Late one night, Deborah Peters enters her hotel room to find her maid is gone and another woman is in her place. Deborah is already on a path of revenge, yet … Read more
Once again #WombatFriday is upon us! The first and most important link I’ll share is a delightful talk given by Kirsty Stonell Walker on Pre-Raphaelite Stunners. Presented at Mrs. Middleton’s Shop in Mrs Middleton’s Shop in Freshwater, Isle of Wight , this al fresco talk is an entertaining overview of women involved with the Pre-Raphaelites … Read more
In The North-West Passage, Millais used a retired sailor named Captain Trelawny for the old mariner. Trelawny was described affectionately as a “jolly old pirate” and had a colorful past to prove it. The Life and Letters of Sir John Everett Millais, written by the artist’s son, mentions briefly that Trelawny was once abducted by … Read more
An exciting new addition to the Unexpected Pre-Raphaelite Sightings page! Thank you to Victoria Osborne for sharing. The 2013 thriller The Best Offer (Deception) stars Geoffrey Rush as an eccentric art auctioneer with a secret collection of portraits of beautiful women – including Burne-Jones’ Vespertina Quies and one of Birmingham Museums’ Rossetti drawings of Fanny Cornforth. Pre-Raphaelite beauties … Read more
Forever has become a show that our entire family watches together. I love the premise: A 200-year-old man works in the New York City Morgue trying to find a key to unlock the curse of his immortality. Ioan Gruffud is on point every episode. His character, Henry Morgan, is dapper, elegant, and has a Sherlockian … Read more
This week marks the birth of William Shakespeare, so in celebration I shared several Pre-Raphaelite and Shakespeare related links on the Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood Facebook page and Twitter. “Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio: a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy: he hath borne me on his back a thousand times; and now, … Read more
If you are looking for Shakespeare inspiration today, you are in luck! Visit happybirthdayshakespeare.com for a large collective of bloggers sharing posts in honor of the day! At the end of this post, you will find links to other Pre-Raphaelite images of Shakespearean works on PreRaphaeliteSisterhood.com. In celebration of the Bard’s birthday, here’s my favorite Shakespearean … Read more
“Do you know the wombat at the Zoo?” asked Rossetti; “a delightful creature — the most comical little beast.” (Memorials of Edward Burne-Jones, Vol. I) Happy #WombatFriday! This week’s interesting links: From The Kissed Mouth: Photographing Alice (and Ina and Edith) (Yes, that Alice) Becoming Julia, learning wet collodion process photography Via Grumpy Art Historian: Campaigning for … Read more
It is thrilling to see Fanny Cornforth in the news this week. You may remember that recently, #WombatFriday was devoted to the mystery of Fanny Cornforth in honor of Kirsty Stonell Walker’s blog post that shed light on Fanny’s final years. For those of us that follow Pre-Raphaelite news closely, this was this first published … Read more
The Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery is currently preparing their latest exhibit: Love is Enough: William Morris and Andy Warhol: Love is Enough draws together iconic and rarely seen works by two giants of the 19th and 20th centuries – William Morris and Andy Warhol. The Birmingham showing of this exhibition will see Birmingham Museum … Read more
This week marks the anniversary of Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s death in 1882. A founding member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, Rossetti’s works capture his unique view of beauty. His paintings of women during the latter stage of his life are often criticized for their unusual physical attributions: elongated necks, cupid bow lips, and languid gazes. And, of … Read more
“The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” ~ Dante Gabriel Rossetti Once again, regular readers will know that Friday means #WombatFriday! A day of celebrating the Pre-Raphaelites with silliness and a spirit of fun. Artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti had a lifelong love for wombats and his enthusiasm for them spread among … Read more
The Bridge of Sighs is delicate, full of pathos, and represents the plight of any young woman in the Victorian era who has been unfortunate enough to lose her virtue. This brings to mind the double standard that persists in many cultures to this day: no one seems to mourn a male who loses his … Read more
Happy #WombatFriday to you! It’s also Good Friday and Easter weekend is here, so I hope that whatever your plans, you have the loveliest of times. I am in desperate need of a chocolate bunny. Well, bunnies (who am I kidding?) There’s a lot going on, so here’s the latest Pre-Raphaelite and Victorian links: Earlier … Read more
Above is a version of John William Waterhouse’s The Flower Picker. In J.W. Waterhouse (2002, Phaidon Press), author Peter Trippi tells us that Waterhouse painted at least four versions of this work. “Waterhouse employed looser handling to make at least four depictions of a girl leaning over a fence to pick flowers. There is no evidence … Read more
Happy Wombat Friday! This week, our hero the wombat admires Waterhouse’s Flora and the Zephyrs, which can be seen in the previous post The Winds of Waterhouse. March is coming to an end and #MythicMarch has been wonderful. If you are interested in incorporating the beauty if myth into your home life, you can join … Read more
To celebrate World Poetry Day, I share one of my favorite poems by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Sudden Light I have been here before, But when or how I cannot tell: I know the grass beyond the door, The sweet keen smell, The sighing sound, the lights around the shore. You have been … Read more
Once again, it’s #WombatFriday! This week, I am sharing a story with you because for Pre-Raphaelite enthusiasts, this is a profound discovery. Fanny Cornforth was a frequent model for for Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Historically, biographers have written more about his models Elizabeth Siddal and Jane Morris, leaving Fanny to the sidelines. Her past as a prostitute … Read more
Happy Wombat Friday! Why Wombat Friday? If the concept of Wombat Friday is new to you, Kirsty Stonell Walker’s post will fill you in. Mythic March continues and I have just shared a post about the beautiful sorceress Circe. And since Circe could be considered monstrous, here’s my previous post on Monstrous Women. Stephanie Stewart-Howard has … Read more
This week marks the beginning of Mythic March, so my posts have been celebrations of mythology and legend: Legendary Armor and The persistence of Myth. If you are interested in incorporating the beauty of myth, fantasy, and fairy tale into your own home, visit my friend Grace’s blog Domythic Bliss. Kirsty Stonell Walker has shared paintings … Read more
Myths are our earliest experiments with metaphor and language. They are truths nestled within layers of mystery and magic that tell us that we can make it if we try. Myths don’t smother us in platitudes, they openly tell us that bad things are going to happen and evil exists. The truth of the tale … Read more