“The Love Potion” Evelyn De Morgan

I was flipping through Evelyn Pickering De Morgan and the Allegorical Body by Elise Lawton Smith, and came across The Love Potion (1903). Honestly what drew me into this painting was the black cat (not to say the rest of the painting isn’t interesting)!

Today, the black cat still has negative connotations, and I’m sure De Morgan’s black cat in this painting has a magical meaning. Based off of the title The Love Potion, I’m assuming that the woman mixing the elixir is a gypsy or witch, and the black cat was added to strengthen this claim. The woman in her brilliant golden dress seems to represent a bygone time; perhaps her attire suggests a medieval connection.

Looking out the window, we see two minuscule figures. A knight in armor and a woman dressed in white. This scene holds different meanings for me. At first, I thought that the woman in gold was mixing a potion to give to the knight, so as to steal his love away from from the woman in white. Then, I thought maybe she was mixing the potion for the lady in white, so as to gain his attraction. If this is the case, it shows the woman in white getting what she wants. One last idea I had, was that the woman in gold concocted the elixir for the knight, and the scene outside the window shows the lady in gold (now dressed in white), reaping the benefits of the potion.

Looking around the room I notice a collection of books stored beneath the window. Perhaps these are spell books or poetry on courtly love? To the left of the woman, a couple of books haven fallen down (and they are unmarked unlike the other books that have titles). Could these be the books she was reading that inspired her to use a love potion? Laying next to her is a white cloth. Originally, I thought it was a handkerchief that she had been using to wipe her eyes after crying. However, she doesn’t look as if she has been crying, so perhaps she used the cloth to smuggle in the potion in secrecy.

Carved into the bottom portion of the bench she sits on are multiple panels with figures in outdoor settings. These remind me of courtly love scenes where lovers are secretly meeting because the visible panels display couples that are embracing.

The woman adding the potion to the goblet is totally focused on her task at hand. However, her black cat stares intently back at the viewer, aware of our intrusion on this private scene. Returning to the room, the curtains hanging beside the open window have stylized lions and trees. To me, the lions look like they were painted after bestiary animals (and for that matter, the trees look like they were taken from a manuscript too). I’m sure there is a reason why she chose to portray lions versus some other animal.

Looking closely at the stylized patten on the trees, I realized it looks very similar to the detail on her head scarf. Both have a scale like effect. However, on her scarf, the fabric almost looks like red snake skin with golden and green iridescent accents.

Looking outside, rolling hills are bathed in light produced by the setting sun. A castle is barely visible in the horizon. Perhaps the setting sun suggests that at last the couple is together and they are ready to pursue the next stage of life together.

Evelyn De Morgan. 1889. Birkenhead, Wirral, Williamson Art Gallery and Museum.

After doing some research into the painting, I discovered that The Love Potion belongs to a group of thematically related works, including Medea, and Queen Eleanor and Fair Rosamund. These paintings focus not on a woman’s helplessness but on her magical powers (Smith 100). Both Queen Eleanor and Fair Rosamund and The Love Potion represent the Pre-Raphaelites attraction to medieval themes (Smith 104).

Evelyn De Morgan. C.1903. London, De Morgan Foundation.

In The Love Potion, the woman is represented as a civilized scholar rather than a creepy, disheveled witch active late at night. Portrayed in her study, she represents an alchemist or sorcerer rather than a witch. Two of her leather bound books Artis Magi and Iamblicus are placed next to each other and likely refer to the work of Iamblichus, a Syrian Neoplatonist who promoted the magic of theurgy. De Occulta Philosophia can be connected to the physician and philosopher Agrippa von Nettesheim from the sixteenth-century. Another volume labelled Paracelsus contains the work of Paracelsus, a contemporary of Agrippa, and was best known for his studies in medical, chemical, and alchemical areas. AZ: Opus likely refers to an allusion to Azoth, which represents the “universal spirit of the world”, and was referred to as “the soul of dissolved bodies” in an early alchemical text. At times, AZ also stood for “the alpha and omega which are everywhere present” (Smith 107).

The Love Potion may have been inspired by her husband’s work The Alchemist’s Daughter. The landscape is reminiscent of her work. However, she has removed the woman from the secondary role, and instills her with authority within her painting (Smith 107).

William De Morgan. Date Unknown. London, De Morgan Foundation.

Unlike Maria Spartali Stillman’s work Pharmakeutria, the woman works in a light filled study and not within the darkness of a forest. De Morgan’s black cat would act in much of the same way as Stillman’s owl; both would be associated with evil, the darkness of night, and witches. However, the cat is calmly curled at the woman’s feet and seems friendly rather than diabolical. Another association of the cat links it to the “feminine” evil, connecting it to the mysteries of the night (similarly like the moon was gendered as female) (Smith 107-108).

Maria Spartali Stillman. 1869. Location Unknown.

Cats were also associated as being unpredictable, cunning, and as aggressively sexual. Dating back to at least the Sixteenth-century, cats symbolized prostitution. De Morgan’s cat however, challenges the idea about witches and it is assumed to be a well behaving house cat, portrayed in a non-threatening way. De Morgan surely was taking the image of the cat and changing its perception, much in the same way that she was tackling the social roles for women (Smith 108).

De Morgan also chose her colors for this painting with the upmost care. According to the alchemical system, the golden yellow of the woman’s dress symbolizes the highest stage of purification, and is not associated with treachery or jealousy, as it often is in Western traditions. The four stages that marked the transitions towards the ultimate spiritual enlightenment were black, which is the color of Prime Matter (guilt, sin, and death), white (representing the early stages of purification), and then red and yellow (the final stages towards the purity of gold) (Smith 108).

With this information in mind, the black cat symbolizes the soul in transition towards purification. Its blackness is offset by the red lions, which were seen as creatures of the light in Giordano Bruno’s “On the Shadow of Ideas”. The progression to spiritual enlightenment can be seen in the spiral shape from the black cat, to the white cloth, to the red lions and cushions, and finally to the brilliant gold of her dress (Smith 108).

Overall, The Love Potion is another beautiful painting where De Morgan turns the role of the woman into a strong, intelligent, and skilled protagonist who doesn’t resort to manipulative behavior in her journey of transformation.

As always, I would love to hear your opinions and/or research on this work. Thanks for reading!

Works Cited

Smith, Elise Lawton. Evelyn Pickering De Morgan and the Allegorical Body. London: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2002. Print.

“Cadmus and Harmonia” Evelyn Pickering De Morgan

Evelyn De Morgan. 1877. London, De Morgan Foundation.

Women artists who portrayed the female nude during the late nineteenth century ran the risk of being pegged into two categories. These women were viewed as being morally decadent, or surprisingly, as being politically conservative because they were following the classical revival movement, which was popular at the time. De Morgan’s use of the female nude stood for allegorical purposes, which often tackled the dissatisfaction women felt from their stifling roles in life (Smith 60-61).

During the first decade of her career, her focus wasn’t on the allegorical as much as it was on producing paintings from sources that were more traditionally biblical, mythological, or literary. From her first study trip to Rome in 1875, to her marriage to William De Morgan in 1885, her early work from this decade can broadly be categorized as history paintings, which is an oddity for a woman artist.

First of all, history paintings were perceived as being superior because of the required education needed to produce one. This knowledge included training with the classics, becoming acquainted with contemporary European literature, and years of drawing from a model that was both draped and nude. This education was the standard for men, but De Morgan was a fortunate young lady and received the same education at home as her brothers. This included learning Greek, Latin, French, German, and Italian, while reading classical mythology and literature. From here, she was given the opportunity to study art at the Slade School of Art, but was not allowed formal training with a fully nude model (Smith 63).

Another aspect that links her aspiration to becoming a professional painter is her skillful use of oils and not watercolors (which were deemed suitable for women) (Smith 65).

In 1877, she exhibited Cadmus and Harmonia at the Dudley Gallery (Smith 65). Studying the work, I immediately thought of Eve and the serpent, but I discovered that the title didn’t fit. In the painting, a fully nude woman stands directly in the center of the painting as if on display. She also looms close to the foreground and seems overly large when compared to the rocky formations around her. She looks sadly off to the side, as if thinking about an old memory or past lover. We see no sign of human inhabitation, only a sprinkling of small flowers at her feet, and calm water to her left. The snake has coiled around both of her feet, anchoring her in place and moves upwards, ready to complete his task of captivating her.

After doing research on this painting, I discovered many other references. The woman’s pale skin, painted with a touch of silvery gray, echoes the underside of the snake’s belly. Visitors likely cringed at the thought of a woman’s bare skin touching that of a snake’s. The late Victorian viewer was more aware of the emotional connection and not the intellectual one. A general, erotic associated would have been assumed, from Eve and Lilith to Lamia and Flaubert’s Salammbo (Smith 63).

The narrative of Cadmus and Harmonia focuses on the devotion between an elderly married couple in a moment of sorrow. However, as we can plainly see, Harmonia is a beautiful young lady, not an old woman (Smith 63). Ovid wrote that Cadmus encountered the king of Phoenicia, and “a serpent sacred to Mars” who killed Cadmus’s attendants. Finally, after struggling to destroy the serpent, Cadmus succeeds, but then hears a voice say “Thou too shalt be a serpent for men to gaze on.” Years later, after marrying Harmonia (daughter to Venus and Mars), and having several of their children and grandchildren die, Cadmus said: “Was that a sacred serpent which my spear transfixed long ago…? If it be this the gods have been avenging with such unerring wrath, that I pray that I, too, may be a serpent, and stretch myself in long snaky form.” Harmonia, distraught at his transfiguration, embraces his serpentine form as it snakes up her body and begs the gods to transform her into a serpent also. “She spoke; he licked his wife’s face and glided into her dear breasts as if familiar there, embraced her, and sought his wonted place about her neck. All who were there-for they had comrades with them-were filled with horror. But she only stroked the sleek neck of the crested dragon, and suddenly there were two serpents there with intertwining folds.” An excerpt of Ovid’s passage was placed with De Morgan’s exhibition of Cadmus and Harmonia (Smith 65).

I find it interesting that even though there were comrades present during this transfiguration phase, De Morgan chose to portray only the serpent and Harmonia. I believe it fits nicely with her spiritual ideals because now the viewer focuses solely in on Harmonia and gets the sense of transformation that must be taking place inside of her; how her soul changes in addition to her body.

Looking back, we wonder why De Morgan chose such an elusive female figure-why not Venus, the obvious classical choice? We must assume that she was once again flaunting her superiority; she had a diverse education that went beyond the superficial knowledge of the classical subjects and wanted to make this known (Smith 65).

Women artists during the Late Victorian period were encouraged by their male mentors to portray the nude female as “a submissive decorative being.” De Morgan would have known this and a simple glance at this painting seems as if she went along with the idea, if for professional reasons only. However, upon closer examination of her work and dissection of the myth, Harmonia has been recreated as the protagonist and as a symbol of spiritual transcendence. When compared with Spencer-Stanhope’s Eve Tempted by the Serpent, (c. 1877) the viewer can see the submissive female nude portrayed (Smith 65).  To me, it looks like she has no strength or willpower to avoid what is going to happen next.  She also is portrayed sitting down, which goes along with the submissive theme because she isn’t supporting herself, and could be easily swayed.  Her facial expression also suggests that she has already been brainwashed by the serpent, and offers no hint of resisting his poisonous words (she already has the fruit in her hand too)!

John Roddam Spencer Stanhope. Eve Tempted by the Serpent. C. 1877

Works Cited

Smith, Elise Lawton. Evelyn Pickering De Morgan and the Allegorical Body. London: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2002. Print.

Evelyn Pickering De Morgan

Evelyn De Morgan. 1875. London, De Morgan Foundation. Photo: Witt Library, Courtauld Institute of Art (Smith 23).

De Morgan, Drawing of a Hand with a Paintbrush, 1875.  London, De Morgan Foundation.  Photo: Witt Library, Courtauld Institute of Art (Smith 23).

Born in 1855 in London, Evelyn De Morgan was the eldest child of the lawyer Percival Pickering QC and the niece of J.R. Spencer Stanhope, another Pre-Raphaelite painter.  At age 15 she received lessons with a drawing master, then attended South Kensington and Slade Schools to produce studies (Marsh and Nunn 139; Smith 13).  Stylistically, her work is characterized by the combination of loosely defined Aesthetic, Symbolist, and Classicist movements and falls into the broad category of late Victorian English artists (Smith 13).

Her paintings portray the traditional ideas of late Victorian art by using historical narratives and allegories.  However, she does manages to stand out, especially as a woman artist, from her contemporaries by doing two things.  One is by infusing her work with a form of spiritualism that was based on Swedenborgian ideas about the development of the soul.  Her work of the late 1870s and early 1880s reveals her curiosity for this ideology.  Her attraction to the mystical may in part be later fueled from her marriage to William in 1885.  William’s mother was the author of From Matter to Spirit (1863) a spiritualist treatise, and it turns out she was also closely associated with other Swedenborgian writers throughout mid-century London (Smith 13).

Secondly, her unique portrayal of the female figure captured the viewer’s attention and set her work apart.  Many artists of the time chose to represent the female form, yet they kept her confined within the standard role of being a self-reflective, aesthetic icon.  De Morgan elaborated on that role,  within both narratives and in an allegorical sense, giving them personifications rich in significance.  Her artwork centralizes around the female figure, which is layered with allusions that imply both spiritualist and feminist intentions (Smith 13).

Even though she was stylistically consistent (some may consider that limiting), she conveys a vast range of possible roles for women, from those fighting against restrictive societal boundaries, to those weary with resignation, and to those with the strength and power to control their outcome in life (Smith 13).

Sadly, even with a long and productive career that spanned over half a century, and  consisted of more than 100 paintings, drawings, and a few sculptural pieces, her work was until recently, overlooked (Smith 13-14).  Do not despair though!  After her death in 1919, her brother and sister arranged for her work to be exhibited permanently.  This initiative allowed many of her works to be preserved and enjoyed today.  This collection now resides with the De Morgan Foundation and forms one of the largest permanent exhibitions by a single artist within Britain (Marsh and Nunn 139)!

I would like to close with a brief comment on the image above.  The realistic rendering of the hand proves that early in her career she had proficient drawing skills.  This differs from Siddal’s situation who was limited to a naive style of work, likely from not having a formal art training as De Morgan had.  The sketched hand looks to be that of a woman’s, due to her slenderness of fingers, neatly clipped oval nails, and thin veins traveling across the back of her hand (though I could be wrong)!  Having taken a couple of drawing classes myself, I know the challenges that hands (and feet) posses, and she easily and elegantly replicates the hand in front of her.

Works Cited

Marsh, Jan, and Pamela Gerrish Nunn.  Pre-Raphaelite Women Artists.  Italy: Thames and Hudson, 1998.  Print.

Smith, Elise Lawton.  Evelyn Pickering De Morgan and the Allegorical Body.  London: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2002. Print.

Millais’ “Ophelia”

It just so happens, that yesterday in my 19th Century art history class we discussed Millais’ Ophelia. I originally touched on this topic in regards to Elizabeth Siddal as the model (Siddal Post #3).

Originally, I interpreted the painting as Ophelia being recently deceased. However, I wanted to add some additional thoughts on the matter while it’s still fresh in my mind (that contradicts this suggestion).

I’m not as familiar with Shakespeare’s work as I should be, but it is possible that in this painting, Ophelia isn’t dead yet. She floats in a stupor, with her lips slightly parted as if whispering a melody to herself before being drug down by the weight of her wet garments. This makes sense because her hands are held in such a way as to suggest there is still a touch of life left inside of her. Her cheeks also hold the faint glow of rosiness associated with life. Her life will end shortly after this moment though, so I think it was a deliberate choice to represent her with paler skin (that doesn’t have a healthy flush to it) to portray her transitioning from life to death.

As a side note, I didn’t even realize this wasn’t a typical “rectangle” canvas, but creates a round arc along the top. It may have been intended for a special frame or niche. I like to think that it mimics the way tree branches curve and encompass their surroundings like an umbrella though.

The last little detail (it’s better viewed on a larger image of the work) is that there is a little bird (perhaps a robin) sitting within the branches of the tree (on the left side). If only the bird could speak, it could take flight, alerting others of Ophelia’s dire situation.

I would love to hear what your interpretations of the work are, so comment away!

Image pulled from http://www2.tate.org.uk/ophelia/

Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal (Siddal Post #9)

Lady Clare. (1857). Signed and dated “EES/57”. Watercolor on paper. Private collection.

The literary reference for this painting was Tennyson’s Lady Clare from Poems (1842). Siddal may have first seen the poem in a newspaper, and her interest in the poet eventually led her, Millais, Hunt, Rossetti, and others to illustrate his 1857 edition of Poems. Siddal’s designs included St Cecilia from The Palace of Art and Jephtha’s Daughter from A Dream of Fair Women. Lady Clare was the only painting completed as it was worked up from studies, a typical technique of Pre-Raphaelite artists in the 1850s (Marsh and Nunn 116).

In the story, the natural mother of the heroine begs her daughter to conceal her humble origins so Lord Ronald won’t withdraw his offer of marriage. Lady Clare refuses:
“”If I’m a beggar born”, she said,
“I will speak it out, for I dare not lie.
Pull off, pull off the brooch of gold
And fling the diamond necklace by”.

“Nay now, my child,” said Alice the nurse,
“But keep the secret all ye can.”
She said, “Not so; but I will know
If there be any faith in man.””
(Marsh and Nunn 116).

There may be a personal connection to this poem and watercolor for Siddal. A fear of being rejected for marriage by D.G. Rossetti may have been a lingering fear due to their class difference (Marsh and Nunn 116). The fear was unnecessary though, as they married in spring of 1860 (Prettejohn 191). The poem concludes happily too, as Lord Ronald does not reject his bride due to her lower class standing (Marsh and Nunn 116).

The Victorian interests in medieval art and architecture is evident here. The viewer catches a glimpse of the castle’s stairway through the partially opened door and the stained glass window captures the viewer’s attention with its bright colors. The stained glass references the Judgement of Solomon and when a true mother reveals herself (Marsh and Nunn 116).

Siddal studied Gothic art and medieval manuscripts, likely at John Ruskin’s house or the British Library. Because of this, there is an awkwardness to her figures, perspective, and compositions (Prettejohn 190). In this particular watercolor, Lady Clare’s attire is derived from manuscripts viewed at the British Museum (Marsh and Nunn 116).

In 1984, the Tate Gallery included this piece in its exhibition and it was critically discussed for its gender imagery, inter-texuality, and Pre-Raphaelite compositional practice (Marsh and Nunn 116).

Works Cited

“Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal”. Pre-Raphaelite Art. 4 Mar. 2009. Web. 6 Mar. 2013. http://preraphaelitepaintings.blogspot.com/2009/03/elizabeth-eleanor-siddal-lady-clare.html

Marsh, Jan, and Pamela Gerrish Nunn. “Pre-Raphaelite Women Artists”. London, Thames and Hudson: 1997. Print.

Prettejohn, Elizabeth. The Cambridge Companion to the Pre-Raphaelites. New York, Cambridge University Press: 2012. Print.

Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal (Siddal Post #8)

Lady Affixing a Pennant to a Knight’s Spear (c.1856-59). Watercolor on paper. Tate Gallery.

Clerk Saunders, Lady Affixing a Pennant to a Knight’s Spear, and other works by Siddal helped to redirect the Pre-Raphaelite movement to a medieval theme during the second half of the 1850s (Prettejohn 183). Medieval themes included scenes of chivalry, the knight’s quest, and courtly love (Prettejohn 185). Siddal also led the way for developing distinctive Pre-Raphaelite themes of sorcery, enchantment, and spell-casting.  The distant era of daring deeds, supernatural appearances, and star-crossed lovers were also attractive concepts (Prettejohn 184-185).

She was an avid reader, inspired by romantic poetry of John Keats and William Wordsworth, as well as more recent poems by Alfred Tennyson and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. She was fascinated by border ballads, more specifically “Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border” complied by Walter Scott (which was the literary reference for Clerk Saunders too) (Prettejohn 184-185).

Siddal was also inspired to write poetry; she sketched an illustration for The Lass of Lochroyan. The heroine was portrayed as an outcast who follows the enchantment of her lover, and is then branded as a witch (Prettejohn 185).

Now, back to Lady Affixing a Pennant to a Knight’s Spear.
Within the painting, the lady assists the knight with his pennant before he heads out for combat. To his left, his horse and squire await in the doorway. This subject was common for the time it was painted; see Rossettie’s Before the Battle (MFA, Boston), Millais’ At the Tournament (Ashmolean), and Burnes-Jones The Knight’s Farewell (Ashmolean). This period was marked with a desire for intensely worked court scenes (Marsh and Nunn 117).

D.G. Rossetti. Before the Battle.

Edward Burne-Jones. The Knight’s Farewell.

Daniel Maclise. Spirit of Chivalry.

The ultimate inspiration for all of these works was Maclise’s “Spirit of Chivalry” (1845-7) for the Palace of Westminister and was widely distributed through engravings (Marsh and Nunn 117). In Siddal’s watercolor, she treats the scene in almost a domestic way. The knight fiddles with his hammer and nail and the lady awkwardly embraces him (Marsh and Nunn 117). This gives me two reactions; one where they are all about business and there isn’t emotion because they are focusing on the task at hand. On the other hand, I could also see it as the lady showing her support and affection in what must be a scene filled with tension. The knight is about to go into battle and it is uncertain if he will survive.  In comparison to Burne-Jones The Knight’s Farewell, Siddal’s painting lacks the passionate embrace between lady and knight.

Elizabeth Siddal.  Lady Affixing a Pennant to a Knight’s Spear.

The red of the pennant symbolizes Love and fills in the space between the two figures. Even though the scene is in an enclosed space, it has a quality of openness because of the open window and door, allowing the viewer’s eye to travel outside. The distant hills may be inspired from the Peak District, where Siddal visited in 1857/8 (Marsh and Nunn 117).

Philip Burne-Jones owned the work in 1904. The Tate Gallery then purchased it in 1912 and acquired it in 1917. Unlike most of Siddal’s other work, this painting was given a descriptive title for convenience, and not one with a literary or poetic one (Marsh and Nunn 118).

Works Cited

“Daniel Maclise Paintings”. Teppai Art. Web. 8 Mar. 2013.  http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6DH938zOHGc/UJ5xJ2SB-AI/AAAAAAAAGmw/0mc_l9Er6Zk/s1600/Maclise_Daniel_The_Spirit_Of_Chivalry.jpg

“Lady Affixing a Pennant to a Knight’s Spear”. Tate. Aug. 2004. Web. 8 Mar. 2013. Web. http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/siddal-lady-affixing-pennant-to-a-knights-spear-n03202

Marsh, Jan, and Pamela Gerrish Nunn. “Pre-Raphaelite Women Artists”. London, Thames and Hudson: 1997. Print.

“Pre-Raphaelites: The Poetry of Drawings”.  The Telegraph. Web. 8 Mar. 2013.  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturepicturegalleries/8296065/Pre-Raphaelites-The-Poetry-of-Drawing.html?image=7

Prettejohn, Elizabeth. The Cambridge Companion to the Pre-Raphaelites. New York, Cambridge University Press: 2012. Print.

“Rossetti, Dante Gabrielle”. All Art Biz. Web. 8 Mar. 2013. http://allart.biz/photos/image/Dante_Gabriel_Rossetti_55_Before_the_Battle.html#!/exjun_

Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal (Siddal Post #7)

Clerk Saunders. (1857).  Signed and dated “EES/1857”. Watercolor, bodycolor, and colored chalks on paper laid on stretcher (Marsh and Nunn 117).

Siddal started Clerk Saunders as a painting in December 1856 and completed it in 1857 (Chapman and Meacock 103; Marsh and Nunn 117). However, a woodblock illustration was produced for a future ballad book in May 1854. Additional studies can be seen in the 1866 photographic record of her work. Inspiration came from the old Scottish ballad Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border by Scott’s (Marsh and Nunn 117). Art prior to the High Renaissance (such as Gothic art and medieval illumination), also influenced Siddal’s work (Prettejohn 183).

Within this painting, May Margaret encounters the ghost of her murdered lover, Clerk Saunders, who appears after making his unearthly entrance through the wall to renew his vows. Kneeling on the bed, she kisses the wand to show her fidelity (Marsh and Nunn 117; Prettejohn 183). Both figures appear ghostly and pale, and this heightens the dramatic scene of the dead confronting the living. Through the window, dawn’s light pours over the slumbering medieval city. On the shelf an empty hour-glass stands, which could symbolize death, as one’s life has literally run out of time (Prettejohn 183).

The theme of love/desire, use of bright colors, a medieval connection, and a literary reference represents several important Pre-Raphaelite characteristics. Her style is defined by compositional layering, enclosed spaces, attenuated figures, and jewel-like colors. (Prettejohn 183).

This painting also reflects upon the contemporary issues between class and gender. Like Siddal’s Lady Clare and Keat’s Isabella painted by Millais in 1849, this is a story about love between social unequals. Items throughout the room (such as the prie-dieu she is kneeling upon which was used to aid in prayer), suggests that May Margaret is religiously devoted, as was proper for women (Marsh and Nunn 117). The podium decorated with an angel, holds a manuscript. The alcove also has a manuscript and what looks to be an apple. Looking closely at the piece, there seems to be a cross hidden in the shadows on the right side of the alcove behind May Margaret (though it could just be me trying to create more religious references)! Looking at Clerk Saunders, I wonder if he was some type of knight, as there looks to be a crest/emblem on his robes? I’m sure the flowers symbolize something too; perhaps life because they are alive (for the time being anyway) and if someone knows the specific type of flower, there could be a more specialized meaning behind it.

To me, May Margaret seems could be partaking in witchcraft (another popular movement within Pre-Raphaelite work). Did she “summon” Saunders to appear? I believe it could be a possibility; her manuscripts are closed, if there is a cross in the shadows, it could symbolize her wavering faith because it isn’t displayed prominently, plus she has a wand! Just my thoughts though. Also, this could be another self-portrait-the woman has that red hair again!

Comparisons can be made between Siddal’s Clerk Saunders & Morris’ La Belle Iseult. They both have similar environments of an enclosed chamber and a bed with crumpled sheets (Prettejohn 186; Chapman and Meacock 103). I also noticed that in La Belle Iseult, the manuscript is open, which could suggest her strong religious devotion.

William Morris’ La Belle Iseult. 1858

Clerk Saunders was exhibited at the 1857 Russell Place Show and also included in the British Art exhibition that was sent to America later in that same year. Charles Eliot Norton of Harvard then purchased the painting. Charles Fairfax Murray later acquired it and inscribed on the back: “This picture by Mrs Rossetti, esteemed by her husband the best of her works,” and later continues, “Gabriel Rossetti himself worked on this picture as was customary with him, as Mr Burne-Jones told me long ago.” However, the painting doesn’t display D.G. Rossetti’s touch and it’s possible that Murray hoped to enhance the value of this work by his statement. Sir Galahad at the Shrine (1855-7, Tate Gallery 1984, no.217) was signed by both Siddal and D.G. Rossetti so Murray may have also confused the two works accidently (Marsh and Nunn 117).

Works Cited

Marsh, Jan, and Pamela Gerrish Nunn. “Pre-Raphaelite Women Artists”. London, Thames and Hudson: 1997. Print.

“Pre-Raphaelites: The Poetry of Drawing”. The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Web. 6 Mar. 2013. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturepicturegalleries/8296065/Pre-Raphaelites-The-Poetry-of-Drawing.html?image=12.

Prettejohn, Elizabeth. The Cambridge Companion to the Pre-Raphaelites. New York, Cambridge University Press: 2012. Print.

“William Morris, Jane Burden”. Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May. 25 Mar. 2010. Web. 6 Mar. 2013. http://gather-ye-rosebuds-while-ye-may.blogspot.com/2010/03/william-morris-jane-burden-la-belle.html.

Eleanor Elizabeth Siddal (Siddal Post #6)

Lovers Listening to Music by Elizabeth Siddal was completed in 1854. Like Pippa Passes it is signed and dated “E.E.S. 54” and is of a similar size and finish to form a pair (Marsh and Nunn 115).

W.M. Rossetti described it as “Two lovers listening to the music of two dark Malay-looking women”. It is unknown where Siddal’s inspiration came from for this illustration, but it likely came from a literary source (Marsh and Nunn 115).

It is feasible that she illustrated a few lines of her poetry; “Love kept my heart in a song of joy / My pulses quivered to the tune; / The coldest blasts of winter blew / Upon it like sweet airs in June.” (Marsh and Nunn 115).

Like Pippa Passing the female figure seems to be a self-portrait. W.M. Rossetti suggested that the male figure was his brother, which is very likely as he worked in Siddal’s studio. The part I love the best is a sketch by Siddal from 1853 where he sits for her (Marsh and Nunn 115). Women artists in the past didn’t get much opportunity to represent men, unless they were chaperoned so “nothing” could happen (mostly actions of a sexual nature).  It is unclear if he sat for her without a chaperone; if he did, that would be a scandalous action to anyone who knew about it!

The child represents Love and is reminiscent of the angel in Rossetti’s Girlhood of Mary Virgin (1849, Tate Gallery). The background is thought to be inspired from the Hastings area as she resided there in spring 1854 (Marsh and Nunn 115).

In March of 1855, Siddal accidentally sells Lovers Listening to Music (which was originally purchased by William Allingham), to John Ruskin who bought all of her existing drawings at once (Chapman and Meacock 90). The replicate she produced for Allingham is (or was) on loan to Wightwick Manor (Marsh and Nunn 115).

For not having any formal art education before creating Pippa Passing and Two Lovers Listening to Music shows potential. I’ve said it before, but if only she had had the opportunity to live a full live, I think she would have produced some phenomenal work! She did attended a ladies art class at Sheffield Art School in 1857. After this she embarked on her artistic career with little to no formal instruction. However, she was a part of D.G. Rossetti’s life, so she received knowledge (and probably inspiration) this way (Prettejohn, 189).

Without this connection to Rossetti, I doubt we would know as much as we do today because women artists were not taken seriously.  Going way back to the Renaissance, if a woman artist produced a great work it would often be accredited to a male artist, or people would think she paid a man to paint it and put her name on it.  I’m still in the midsts of learning about Pre-Raphaelite art, but the men who consisted of the movement, seemed to be ahead of their time in how they encouraged women artists.

I personally like Pippa Passing better than Two Lovers Listening to Music for two reasons.  The first is that I feel Pippa Passing has smoother hatching to the clothing, giving it a cleaner appearance.  I also love how the viewer must know about the “fallen” woman to fully appreciate this work.  Even though I don’t like the rougher texture to the shading in Two Lovers Listening to Music, I think it does fit with the countryside setting that gives it more of a rustic atmosphere.

Works Cited

Marsh, Jan, and Pamela Gerrish Nunn. “Pre-Raphaelite Women Artists”. London, Thames and Hudson: 1997. Print.

Chapman, Alison, and Joanna Meacock. A Rossetti Family Chronology. Great Britian, Palgrave Macmillan: 2007. Print.

Prettejohn, Elizabeth. The Cambridge Companion to the Pre-Raphaelites. New York, Cambridge University Press: 2012. Print.

Eleanor Elizabeth Siddal (Siddal Post #5)

Pippa Passes was created in 1854. It is signed and dated “E.E.S. 54″ and was rendered with pen and brown ink over pencil on paper. This drawing was purchased by the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford in 1977. In addition to this piece, two other identical versions were produced by Siddal as a possibility for future sales (Marsh and Nunn 115).

I wanted to start with Pippa Passes because it’s one of Siddal’s earliest finished drawings. It also encompasses the prevalent style of outline drawing and literary subjects that were seen throughout early Pre-Raphaelite art (Marsh and Nunn 115).

This drawing inspired by Robert Browning’s dramatic poem Pippa Passes illustrates scene III of his work. Set in a modern age, the heroine (Pippa) meanders throughout the city of Asolo and comes across a group of “Poor Girls sitting on the steps”. As she passes by she overhears their conversation, as they boldly gossip to one another about their lovers and clients. As Siddal was a young milliner in the early 1850′s, she likely encountered prostitutes in the streets of London much in the same way as the heroine happened upon the gossiping girls (Marsh and Nunn 115).

This illustration symbolizes the moral differences between Pippa, who wears modest clothing, no accessories, walks upright, and conveys a peaceful expression, and the “Poor Girls” who are attired to be more eye catching, show expression, and sit on the ground. These representations fit with the contemporary concern over the types of women who were looked down upon, and were considered to have “fallen” in society’s eyes. Take a look at the links below showing Hunt’s Awakening Conscience in the Tate Gallery or Rossetti’s unfinished Found both from 1854 that touch on the subject on the “fallen” woman (Marsh and Nunn 115).

http://www.victorianweb.org/painting/whh/replete/P10.html

http://paintingforsale.me/paintings/dante-gabriel-rossetti/dante-gabriel-rossetti-found-14329.html

Sorry I couldn’t find a better link to Rossetti’s work (surprising I know)!

I find it interesting that as a woman artist, Siddal choose to stick with the concept of the “fallen” woman (Marsh and Nunn 115). I wouldn’t go as far as to say that Pippa in this work is a self-portrait of Siddal, but I think the face hints at her features and she has lighter colored hair (when compared to the other women), so perhaps she was replicating the reddish tone of her hair? If so, then she would be connecting herself to the image of the upright and virtuous woman, and not that of the “fallen” type.

One last little tidbit! John Ruskin purchased this piece in 1855 and exhibited it at the 1857 Pre-Raphaelite salon. Rossetti showed it to Robert Browning, the poet who inspired Siddal’s art in November of 1855. Browning was “delighted beyond measure” (Marsh and Nunn 115).

Works Cited
Marsh, Jan, and Pamela Gerrish Nunn. “Pre-Raphaelite Women Artists”. London, Thames and Hudson: 1997. Print.

“Pippa Passes”. Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood. Web. 6 Mar. 2013. http://preraphaelitesisterhood.com/pippa-passes/.

Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal (Siddal Post #4)

Photo credit: Johannesburg Art Gallery.
Regina Cordium by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. 1860.
Oil on panel. Dimensions: 10 x 8 in.
Exhibition History: New Gallery, 1897 (no.61); R.A., 1973 (no.300); Tate, 1984 (no.114) (Regina).

After modeling for Millais’ Ophelia, she sat solely for Dante Gabrielle Rossetti who rapidly fell in love with her, and inspired many of his poems and paintings at this time (Elizabeth).

John Ruskin referred to Siddal as Rossetti’s “pupil”, and in 1856, Frank Maddox Brown insists that she is only his pupil and not his fiancé (Chapman and Meacock 80; 97). On May 23rd 1860, Siddal and Rossetti are finally married after several delays due to her ill health. Sadly, neither family nor friends are present for the occasion (Chapman and Meacock 127).

In September 1860, she models for Rossetti’s Regina Cordium (pictured), a year and a half before her death (Chapman and Meacock 129; Elizabeth).

In Reginan Cordium, Siddal’s features are once again present, but they have Rossetti’s artistic stylization applied. Rossetti gives his women a solid and slightly husky appearance. I particularly like how he has treated her hair. It has a thick and luxurious quality that is further enhanced by the deep crimson red tone.

Rossetti has also chosen to portray Siddal with rosy pink cheeks and full sensual lips. Like many other works where she sat as the model, she shows very little expression and does not meet the viewer’s eyes. As in Deverell’s Twelfth Night, she is posed holding a flower. She also has a red, beaded necklace with a heart, and I’m assuming this is Rossetti showing his love for Siddal. It is interesting that in Deverell’s Twelfth Night, Siddal was also dressed in red (it may be nothing though, as Pre-Raphaelite artists loved to use bright colors)!

Works Cited

Chapman, Alison, and Joanna Meacock. A Rossetti Family Chronology. Great Britian, Palgrave Macmillan: 2007. Print.

“Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal (1834-1862)”. The Victorian Web. 16 Sep. 2006. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. http://www.victorianweb.org/painting/siddal/index.html

“Regina Cordium”. Rossetti Archive. 2008. Web. 5 Mar. 2013. http://www.rossettiarchive.org/docs/s120.rap.html