An important hallmark of Pre-Raphaelite art is truth to nature. Of course, there are many reasons why the art of the Pre-Raphaelites is so visually striking. Their subject matter often illustrates a compelling narrative, the vibrant hues they used results in a visually arresting effect that commands attention, and who can resist the beauty of … Read more
Truth to nature was one of the main tenets of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and an excellent example of this can be seen in the Death’s Head moth in William Holman Hunt’s painting The Hireling Shepherd (above). I’ve blogged about it many times before; it’s part of my Shakespeare post that I share yearly on the … Read more
This morning I shared on the Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood Facebook page Edward Poynter’s portrait of Georgiana Burne-Jones, wife of Sir Edward Burne-Jones who was an important figure in the second wave of Pre-Raphaelitism. In ‘The Last Pre-Raphaelite’ biographer Fiona MacCarthy describes the watch Georgie’s wearing on a chain as a “ball-shaped gold watch studded with chrysolites … Read more
“In the middle of the journey of our life, I found myself in a dark wood, for the straight path was lost” So begins Dante’s journey through Inferno (hell), Purgatorio (purgatory), and Paradiso (paradise). His travels through these three areas of the afterlife make up La Divina Commedia, the Divine Comedy. I came to the … Read more
Last week I posted Evelyn De Morgan’s Hope in a Prison of Despair (seen above) on the Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood Facebook page. A happy byproduct of sharing things on the Pre-Raph Sisterhood Facebook page is that when people comment, like, or share the post, it pops up in my own feed again. I noticed that the … Read more
I receive many positive emails through this blog because, for the most part, people in the world are great. The negative ones stand out, though, and occasionally eat at me. In a recent message, someone (I assume not a regular reader of this blog) questioned my feminism because I am devoted to Pre-Raphaelite art. They … Read more
Over the years, the term Pre-Raphaelite took on a life of its own and in addition to referring to art of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, many people use it to describe a bohemian style of dress or a certain physical type. Usually, when I see a modern woman described as Pre-Raphaelite, it refers to her wild and … Read more
Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s sonnet Life-in-Love fascinates me, especially when read with knowledge of two great loves in his life: Elizabeth Siddal and Jane Morris. The first two lines suggest that his deceased lover’s life has somehow migrated into the body of his new love: Not in thy body is thy life at all/But in this … Read more
Like his Pre-Raphaelite brethren, Dante Gabriel Rossetti used live models in his works. Throughout the course of his career, the same faces grace his canvasses, ranging from family members to lovers. Occasionally, models Elizabeth Siddal and Alexa Wilding are confused for each other. Other models may be misidentified completely, so this post is intended to … Read more
Georgiana Burne-Jones, wife of artist Edward Burne-Jones, was a devoted wife and mother. Her love for her husband and children is obvious when reading any account of the Burne-Jones family. Despite her joy at becoming a mother, Georgie poignantly described a sense of exile once she was no longer in the studio with her … Read more
Much of the Pre-Raphaelites’ work presents a narrative often inspired by literature and myth, but there are also a number of Victorian artworks are not just the telling of a story, but a depiction of a story being told. In the example above, Dante Gabriel Rossetti rapidly sketched Tennyson as he read his poem Maud … Read more
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 week I’d like to share the song The Wood Maiden from Laurie Ann Haus. I find it captivating, haunting, ethereal. The beautiful … Read more
After a weekend of worldwide tragedy, to spend a day where Pre-Raphaelite art filled my Twitter feed was a welcome diversion. It was great fun and I’d like to extend a hearty thanks to the Pre-Raphaelite Society, Serena Trowbridge, and Madeleine Pearce for orchestrating #PRBday. I took a few screenshots to share how beautiful Twitter … Read more
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 November is finally upon us. 2015 seems to have flown by and looking back on the year I realize that most of it … Read more
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 Rossetti has been on my mind for Halloween, which is why I wrote Dante Gabriel Rossetti and the Supernatural. It’s almost time … Read more
Pre-Raphaelites sought fidelity to nature in their works, recreating the natural world with painstaking attention to detail. They did not, however, limit themselves to realistic subjects. Their paintings often placed supernatural or fantasy subjects from mythology and literature into realistic settings. Such depictions with their vivid hues and photographic realism resulted in works that were … Read more
Tim Powers doesn’t write about your run-of-the-mill vampires. His undead may feed upon you, but in return they will inspire words and poetry that you could never have written before. I found Powers’ mythology to be a refreshing twist. In Hide Me Among the Graves, the artistic Rossetti family deals with the vampiric curse of … Read more
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 Earlier this week, I shared thoughts on Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s painting Proserpine and blogging about art as a serious endeavor. The Watts Gallery … Read more
Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s painting Proserpine is an arresting and visually striking work. Blogging about it once has never been enough; it resurfaces in my posts again and again. The myth of Proserpine/Persephone is a story that resonates with me on multiple levels, so I think that in writing about it I am attempting to explore … Read more
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 The Pre-Raphaelite Society is celebrating 6k members in their Facebook group. I’m proud to be a member of both the Facebook group and … Read more
Upon the death of Charles Dickens in 1870, the artist John Everett Millais traveled to Gad’s Hill Place to make a sketch of the novelist in state. In The Life and Letters of Sir John Everett Millais, the artist’s son states that while he only intended to make a slight outline drawing, he was overcome … Read more
The romance of Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Elizabeth Siddal lends itself well to fiction. It’s a story that has it all: beauty, pathos, and the synergy of artistic creation that flowed between them. Author Rita Cameron’s new book Ophelia’s Muse tells the story of Elizabeth Siddal’s discovery by the Pre-Raphaelite circle and how it led … Read more
Sir Edward Burne-Jones used Fanny Cornforth as a model for his unfinished painting, Hope, above. Although incomplete, it remains one of my favorite paintings of Fanny. As Jan Marsh points out in Pre-Raphaelite Women: Images of Femininity in Pre-Raphaelite Art, in Hope it is possible to ‘appreciate the ‘fine regular features’ that attracted so many admirers before … Read more
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 week in the Pre-Raphaelite blogosphere: Kirsty Stonell Walker wrote an excellent post on Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s reputation in the 20th century. … Read more
After posting about Evelyn De Morgan’s painting The Gilded Cage, I began to think about other paintings that depict women who are trapped and imprisoned in some way, paintings that prompt me to ponder limitations and boundaries. The Lady of Shalott is perhaps the most obvious example that comes to mind. Based upon the poem … Read more