September: A Month of Pre-Raphaelite Origins

Happy Wombat Friday! We’ve reached September, which is an important month in Pre-Raphaelite history – on the 8th of September 1848, the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood formed. Throughout the month, the Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood blog will be exploring the early days of the PRB, early works, members, and, of course, the women involved. Thanks for joining us!

#WombatFriday What’s on your summer reading list?

Wombat Friday Love and Light

It’s Wombat Friday and T-Dub sure is excited about his latest poolside read! Light and Love: The Extraordinary Developments of Julia Margaret Cameron and Mary Hillier by the ever-charming Kirsty Stonell Walker. Want to add some Pre-Raphaelite flavor to your summer reading? Here’s a Rossetti reading list based on books the artist enjoyed, and a … Read more

Wombats and Wedding Bells

This week, I have a special #WombatFriday to share with you! In the words of Jane Eyre, “Reader, I married him.” On Tuesday, my husband and I were married in an intimate ceremony quite close to the ocean. Due to the times we live in, we were limited to four guests and the entire party, minister included, … Read more

“You see, Watson, but you do not observe.”

Throughout history, humankind has created innovative ways to see. Loupes, magnifying glasses, lorgnettes, stereoscopes, telescopes, and so many other intricate inventions. We’ve always searched for ways to magnify. We strive to see both as far away as the stars and planets and as microscopically as the smallest organisms on Earth. What do we do with … Read more

Embracing the Revolution

Every Friday since the 25th of January, 2013,  I have posted a silly wombat-related photo on social media as a fun tribute to one of my favorite artists, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and his undeniable passion for these delightful marsupials. You may think it’s a ridiculous thing to do and in the grand scheme of things, … Read more

What’s up with the wombats?

“Rossetti was the planet around which we revolved, we copied his way of speaking. All beautiful women were “stunners” with us. Wombats were the most beautiful of God’s creatures.”–artist Valentine Cameron Prinsep Wombat Friday began in 2013 when, in a moment of frivolity, I posted several pictures of wombats with cake and books in a … Read more

#WombatFriday The Nature of Gothic

Happy #WombatFriday! Any reading plans this weekend? T-Dub found a charming Penguin Books edition of John Ruskin’s “On Art and Life” and I’m sure you can see the excitement all over his wombatty countenance. “And, on the other hand, go forth and gaze upon the old cathedral front, where you have smiled so often at the … Read more

Wombat Friday! Now with extra lemon!

T-Dub, resident wombat at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood, is craving lemons. The source of his delight can be traced to the symbolic details found in Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s painting La Bella Mano.  Dante Gabriel Rossetti painted La Bella Mano in 1875. When planning it, he described it as “a good-sized Titianesque subject — a girl washing her … Read more

A Wombat’s Breakfast

T-Dub, trusty sidekick to Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood, has been reading about what life was like in Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s home. You know what he was interested in? The food. Ah, little wombat friend, you are a creature after my own heart. Novelist George Meredith was apparently disgusted by Rossetti’s breakfasts, which he described as “Plates of … Read more

A #WombatFriday for Lizzie

Wednesday was Lizzie Siddal’s birthday and my sidekick Thaddeus Fern Diogenes Wombat (T-Dub to his friends), has decided to learn more about her. When learning about Lizzie, there’s a lot of misinformation to wade through, so I thought it best for T-Dub to read a personal account from someone who actually knew her. Georgiana Burne-Jones, … Read more

#WombatFriday: T-Dub Visits the Rossetti Clan

T-Dub Photobombs Great Moments in Pre-Raphaelite History. September 1863. Lewis Carroll, author of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, photographs Dante Gabriel Rossetti with his sister Christina, mother Frances, and brother William. Thaddeus Fern Diogenes Wombat, known to friends as T-Dub, crashes their little soiree, much to Rossetti’s perplexed delight. Carroll, whose real name was Charles Lutwidge … Read more

#WombatFriday: Adventures of T-Dub

This #WombatFriday, T-Dub is taking time to smell the marigolds because he’s exhausted from his recent adventures. It’s only to be expected when you’ve been on a rollicking journey through Pre-Raphaelite time. Tune in next week for T-Dub’s latest adventure. You can follow along on the Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood Facebook page and Twitter.

#WombatFriday: Description of Lizzie Siddal

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti When we read about Elizabeth Siddal, it is quite often an account written with shades of sadness and melancholy, which is understandable as … Read more

#WombatFriday: Rossetti’s Dove

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti. You all know T-Dub is a worthy assistant here in my Pre-Raphaelite hood (Get it? Sisterhood? Hood?  Okay, I’ll move on.) I recently … Read more

#WombatFriday Thoughts from Rossetti

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti .  You can follow #WombatFriday on Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood’s Facebook page. At the end of The Collected Works of Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1886), William … Read more

#WombatFriday: The Woman in White

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti   You can follow #WombatFriday on Facebook . This week I have been rereading The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins.  It has long … Read more

#WombatFriday Helen of Troy

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti Thaddeus Fern Diogones Wombat, known to friends as T-Dub, has developed a passion for ancient Greece.  Today he is exploring a woman who … Read more

#WombatFriday The Bower Meadow

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti My sidekick Thaddeus Fern Diogenes Wombat, known as T-Dub to close friends, is quickly becoming a Rossetti aficionado.  Today we contemplate The Bower … Read more

#WombatFriday Behold the Goddess of Memory

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti In Mnemosyne, Dante Gabriel Rossetti painted Jane Morris as the Greek goddess of memory and time. Sadly, time was running out on Rossetti … Read more

#WombatFriday: Peeling Back the Layers

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti Thaddeus Fern Diogenes Wombat is a worthy assistant at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood.  He eagerly absorbs everything he encounters about the Pre-Raphaelites and I enjoy … Read more

#WombatFriday: A Study in Green

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti This has been an exciting week for T-Dub because as I was preparing this blog post, he watched Vertigo for the first time. … Read more

A Tennyson #WombatFriday

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti On September 27, 1855, Dante Gabriel Rossetti attended a gathering at the home of Robert Browning and his wife Elizabeth.  Alfred, Lord Tennyson … Read more

#WombatFriday: Rossetti’s Beasts

Inspired by artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s passion for wombats, every Friday is Wombat Friday at Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. “The Wombat is a Joy, a Triumph, a Delight, a Madness!” – Dante Gabriel Rossetti Last week my worthy assistant T-Dub learned all about Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s exotic menagerie of animals.  He’s still reading William Michael Rossetti’s compilation … Read more