Thursday, July 30, 2009

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

William James Stillman, head-and-shoulders portrait by Rossetti


c. 1901
Photograph of charcoal drawing(?) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, dated 1870.
known as the "American Pre-Raphaelite and husband of Marie Spartali

Julia Margaret Cameron - "Lancelot and Guinevere (Lancelot and Elaine)"


1873
silver gelatin print, 13 3/4 by 11 1/4 inches.
Samuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1979.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Edward Robert Hughes - Portrait of Rosalind


Red chalk on board
signed E R Hughes. del.
7.87 inches wide 9.84 inches high
Hughes's skill as a portrait draughtsman was well known and was remarked upon in his obituary in the Times. It is very apparent in this sensitive profile drawing. The artist's favoured medium was red chalk and his ability to create subtle rosy tints so impressed Burne-Jones that he corresponded about it with Hughes in 1897, writing: `Your method of using (it) reads admirably, and since you have generously imparted it to me, I shall assuredly use it.'(1)
.
1. G.B.-J., Memorials of Edward Burne-Jones, (Macmillan, London 1904), volume 2, page 322
.

John William Waterhouse - The Remorse of Nero


1878.
Oil on Canvas
37 x 66 inches

John William Waterhouse - Head of a Girl


before 1899
Pencil on blue paper

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Desperate Romantics


[Lizzie Siddall played by Amy Manson]
I enjoyed episode 1, which I've only just had time to watch. I'm good at suspending realistic belief and just enjoyed it for what it is, hokum, but good fun hokum, and Amy Manson could be my muse anytime.
The plots for episodes 2/3/4 are up now (spoiler alert!) + various interviews.

The Pre-Raphaelite Body: Fear and Desire in Painting, Poetry, and Criticism


by J. B. Bullen
Clarendon Press; illustrated edition (1998)

Dante Gabriel Rossetti book

by Julian Treuherz, Elizabeth Prettejohn
Thames & Hudson (2003)

Love Revealed: Simeon Solomon and the Pre-Raphaelites


by Colin Cruise (Editor), Victoria Osborne (Editor)
Merrell Publishers Ltd; illustrated edition edition (2005)

John William Hill - West Nyack, New York


1868
Watercolor
Depicting the artist’s home and studio, where a circle of friends met regularly to discuss the writings of John Ruskin and plan the formation of the American Pre-Raphaelites.

Magnificent Dreams: Burne-Jones and the Late Victorians


by Frances Spalding
Phaidon (1978)

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Rossetti Costumes


.
All the inspiration you need for Pre-Raphaelite style

John Everett Millais - Parable of the Unjust Judge


The bulk of Millais’ illustrations are not Pre-Raphaelite. He contributed very widely to a whole series of books and magazines, including 87 drawings for Tennyson, 69 for the magazine Once a Week, 32 to Good Words, 30 drawings plus initial letters for The Cornhill and so on.

Ophelia's frame at the Tate


Ophelia at the Tate


Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Desperate Romantics - Episode 1


I know this is frustrating for non-UK viewers but episode 1 is up on the BBC iPlayer this morning.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00lvyr1/Desperate_Romantics_Episode_1/

Dante Gabriel Rossetti - The Sermon on the Mount


1862
Stained glass.
South nave window. All Saints, Selsley, Gloucestershire

Dante Gabriel Rossetti - A Christmas Carol


1857-1858.
Watercolour and gouache on paper.
Fogg Museum of Art, Harvard University

Saturday, July 18, 2009

First Look: Desperate Romantics, BBC Two


First preview review by someone who's seen the first two episodes.
.
The trailers and links are here:
episode 1 details
Tuesday, 21:00 on BBC Two
(for those in the UK it should be on iPlayer the next day ?)

Simeon Solomon - Head of a Girl


Watercolour on paper
Signed with monogram dated 1889
7.48 inches wide 9.25 inches high

Frederick Smallfield - Shilly Shally


Pencil and watercolour heightened with white on paper
Signed, inscribed and dated 1863
9.17 inches wide 14.02 inches high

Friday, July 17, 2009

John Everett Millais - Sophie Gray


1857
Oil on paper laid on wood
Lent from a private collection courtesy of Peter Nahum at The Leicester Galleries, London
She was only 14 when this was painted
"this intimate picture is one of the most remarkable realist portraits of the nineteenth century"

Eleanor Fortescue Brickdale - Natural Magic