“Through all the ways of our unintelligible world, the trivial and the terrible walk hand in hand together.” –Wilkie Collins, The Woman in White Author Wilkie Collins was strolling home one evening with his brother, artist Charles Allston Collins, and Pre-Raphaelite painter Sir John Everett Millais, when a chance encounter with a distraught woman in white … Read more
Going a little stir-crazy during the quarantine? Here are a few Pre-Raphaelite-related books to nourish you during this disquieting time.
“There’s always a siren singing you to shipwreck.” – Radiohead, “There, There” Hylas and the Nymphs by John William Waterhouse depicts a scene from Jason and the Argonauts. Hylas was the son of King Theiodamas, who was killed in battle by Herakles. Herakles then raised Hylas as his own. Known for both his striking beauty and his … Read more
A breathtaking animated video celebrating the beauty and poetry of Pre-Raphaelite art. Directed and produced by Anna-Ester Volozh. Honestly, I was touched by the delicacy of this work. Absolutely stunning. Watch below. Rebel’s Daydream – Tribute to the Pre-Raphaelites from Dragonbee on Vimeo.
I’ve become quite interested in the actress Ellen Terry . One of the most popular performers of her day, Terry was briefly married to artist G.F. Watts, worked repeatedly with Sir Henry Irving, and had a famous correspondence with Bernard Shaw. I happened upon this fabulous video, a rare treasure that shares brief footage of Terry … Read more
The Lady of Shalott film is one of the most beautiful projects I have ever seen. On an aesthetic level, it encompasses everything I love: diligence to history and craftsmanship, the poetry of Tennyson, and a lush, cinematic quality that allows you to briefly be cocooned into the medieval world of Elaine of Astolat. On … Read more
I was happily surprised this morning when a mundane trip to my local Wal-Mart resulted in a Pre-Raphaelite sighting: A portion of Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s painting La Ghirlandata graces the cover of a computer game called Legends of Fate. I’m tempted to go back and buy it just to see if there’s any art in … Read more
Lauren Laverne shares two examples of muses: Ophelia by Sir John Everette Millais and The Only Blond in the World by Pauline Boty. I love how she describes both:
Matthew Cain, Culture Editor at Channel 4, delivers a wonderful and thought provoking piece on Emma Thompson’s new movie Effie and the possibility that it may renew interest in Pre-Raphaelite art. He says,“In 2012, we’re so familiar with the work of the Pre-Raphaelites that it’s easy to forget just how radical and revolutionary they were. … Read more
On the Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood Facebook Page, Alexandrion Drallipo kindly shared images discovered from The Uninvited. I’ve never seen The Uninvited, but the synopsis at IMDB says “Anna Rydell returns home to her sister (and best friend) Alex after a stint in a mental hospital, though her recovery is jeopardized thanks to her cruel stepmother, aloof … Read more
The fabulous team behind the Lady of Shalott film is at it again! Their current project involves creating four short comic sketches based on famous paintings. They have already created Mona Lisa and American Gothic and are about to do Girl with a Pearl Earring (Vermeer). You may remember that I’ve included the Mona Lisa … Read more
Enter the world of period costumier Pauline Loven through her new blog Periodwardrobe. Pauline has has created costumes for television and for museum films and displays and also costumed and co-produced The Luttrell Psalter Film, The Lady of Shalott and Life on Church Farm films. I love reading about the process of Pauline’s work. She’s … Read more
I was browsing the artmagick forum when I discovered this exciting announcement: “2009 is the bicentenary of the birth of Alfred, Lord Tennyson here in Lincolnshire. As part of the celebrations a major exhibition of Pre-Raphaelite art, including some of Waterhouse’s works, will be shown at The Collection, Lincoln from May.” “WAG Screen is also … Read more
In an earlier post, I shared with you the recently redesigned johnwilliamwaterhouse.com. The works of John William Waterhouse are instantly recognizable for their beautiful, ethereal women — all of whom have that indescribable “Waterhouse” quality. A quality that I can’t quite put my finger on or describe, but they all have it. I suppose it … Read more
Christina Rossetti has the distinction of appearing not only in her brother Dante Gabriel’s first painting to be exhibited, but it was also the first piece of work to bear the mysterious initials “PRB”. At the time, the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was still a secret group of young idealists and the meaning of the PRB inscription … Read more