John William Waterhouse of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood Part 3: Medieval I
http://phistars.blogspot.com/2012/04/john-william-waterhouse-of-pre_25.html
John William Waterhouse of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood Part 3: Medieval
Like other great romanticism artist, Waterhouse had an interest in medieval legends. That time of spirituality, saints and the bizarre fascinated those skeptic romanticist. They where tired of empty logic devoid of meaning. They sought to escape the new materialism. Thus, the looked into the past to find inspiration. Ok, the first painting features Saint Cecilia (1895). She was a blind saint popular during medieval times. She is know as the patron saint of Music. She was only a young teenage girl when the Romans had her killed (along with her husband). As they prepared to chop her head off, she sang to her lord. Before she was taken away, she took care to leave her her home church in order (in the early days churches where held in the houses of wealthy worshipers. She used to host Christian worship in her house, when the Romans sought to slay her). It seems that the Romans failed trice to cut her head off...she died in her house after receiving the sacrament....
In any case, in Waterhouse's "St. Cecilia" the Saint is in the garden listening to two angels playing the violin. It was said that on her wedding the angels played a song for her. On her lap, the bible lies open. The graphics on the bible show that it is one of those fancy medieval bibles. On the background, I see ships, the sea and the rising sun. She is in a rose garden and has before her one of those platform where one knees down for prayer. She is wearing a lovely medieval attire. She is really one pretty saint. The texture on her dress is really quite luxurious. The angels ,on the other hand, sports a lovely white medieval dress with golden linings. Their angel wings are quite realistic. They look like blue hock wings. The colors are quite natural. When it comes to rendering scenery, architecture and historical clothing Waterhouse is an expert. I think that is everything to be said about this first medieval painting. 5 star rating for Waterhouse.
The painting above is called "Lady Clare". She is from a poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson. I reproduced the poem down bellow. This maiden was betrothed to her cousin. Here we see her dressed in a simple brownish red dress. She is a forest maiden (i.e. she likes the outdoors). "A lily-white doe" refers to the white deer behind her. She has a cute pink flower on her hair (for gentleness). The red top bellow her brown dress refers to hidden passion. The lavender flowers in the bottom right stands for "something special". I am not certain about the flowers in the corner left. Over all, the painting with its symbols is pretty neat. Truly, 5 star worthy artwork of Waterhouse.
And clouds are highest up in air,
Lord Ronald brought a lily-white doe
To give to his cousin, Lady Clare.
I throw they did not part in scorn:
Lovers long-betrothed were they:
They two will wed the morrow morn,–
God’s blessing on the day!
This painting is called "The Missal". The missal is is religious book containing all instructions and texts necessary for the celebration of Mass. This maiden is reading her Missal inside her home shrine. Most houses during medieval times had private chapels built into their homes. It was common that people would read their Missals daily. The surrounding has quite the lovely illumination. The light comes from the open window. The design of the columns is Romanesque ( gothic with Roman influence). The checkerboard floor is very expensive. On the chair, we can see the genuine Bible. Behind her, there is a vase with two white roses and a red one. Overall, the painting is imbued with spirituality. Truly, a lovely 5 star worthy romanticism painting.
The next painting is called " Gather ye rosebuds, while ye may". It is from the opening stanza of a poem by Robert Herrick. Here is the stanza down bellow for you folks. IT is one of those Carpe Diem type poems. Basically, this poem speaks of the passage of time. It tells us to enjoy the moment because tomorrow the flower will have withered. Like the poem, the maiden above is holding up a bowl filled with flowers. Those flowers look beautiful, filled with life. Soon, they will whiter and die. This maiden too is like the roses. Its interesting how her green dress is like the stem of the flowers. Her head is the petals. Behind her, we see a mirror. Mirrors always reflect the truth. We see that her gaze is focused on the stained glass. Stained glass where usually found in churches. Her placement ,inside church walls, shows that her thoughts are focused on the spirit. She is aware that her beauty will not last forever. However, the beauty of the soul is eternal. Thus, while we remain alive, we must gather the rosebuds while we may...5 stars. Read my blog while ye may...
- Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
- Old Time is still a-flying;
- And this same flower that smiles today,
- Tomorrow will be dying.
The above painting is called "Dante and Beatrice". The style itself is impressionistic Romanticism. We are all familiar with the story of Dante going through heaven and hell in search of Beatrice. Its a real bummer that he started his search at the bottom of hell. There is no true reason for Beatrix being in hell. As a matter of fact, Dante only saw the girl once, when she was twelve. He then got married and the years passed. One day, (I forget why) Dante was exiled from Italy. During his exile, he got terribly depressed and thus wrote "The Divine Comedy". In this scene, Dante finally meets Beatrix in the Garden of Eden. She is dressed in pure white and she carries flowers in her arms. Dante ,in red, is worshiping Beatrice. Behind him, we see two angels. I think the entire scenery is taken verbatim from the poem. I am not too certain, I never got around to reading the poem. In any case, this painting deserves 5 star rating.
The next painting is called " Fair Rosamund". She is a character from an Old English Ballad. Basically, Rosamund was a pretty lady. The king was in love with her; so he built a lodge for her to keep her safe from the wrath of the queen. This lodge was surrounded by a garden maze. You could only get to her by following a thread. She was said to have been poisoned by the queen who found her way into the lodge. In other versions, she retired to a nunnery or something...I think in this version Rosamund is at the lodge. She has her arms crossed and she is looking out the window waiting for the king to arrive. Behind her, the queen ,disguised as a servant, is glaring at her.
Its interesting the sewing work on the red tapestry that hides the queen. It kinda looks like the Bayeux Tapestry. Very medieval in scenery. On top of the chair, we see Rosamund's sewing. Sewing was an art practiced by ladies to keep sin at bay. Thus, while she waited for her lover she practiced sewing. She sewed three knights with a castle in the background. The maiden herself is a redhead. Red head where popular among the Pre-Raphaelite movements. To show a passionate maiden, one gave her red hair. She is also sporting a lovely blue dress. Climbing the wall, we have a lil rose bush with a single pink rose. Outside we see more of the lodge, the maze and the castle. I think that is everything. Truly, this lovely painting deserves 5 star rating.
The next painting is called " I am sick of shadows, said the Lady of Shalott". From what I learned, the Lady of Shalott was a maiden that lived near Camelot. She had a strange curse that forced her to keep working on her loom without looking directly at the world. She sees the happenings of the world through a mirror. The phrase, I am sick of shadows, refers to the fact that this Lady is tired of looking at the world through a mirror. For the Lady of Shalott, the mirror is a shadow of the world. She said this after seeing Lancelot. She fell in love with him and tried to fight the curse. She made her way to on a boat. She dies before arriving.
In Waterhouse's painting, the lady has just stopped looming. She is stretching and thinking to herself about the tragedy of her life. If you notice, all her embroidery has scenes painted in circles. She sews the scenes inside her mirror. We can see Lancelot and Lady Guinevere walking together inside the mirror. Camelot is also on the horizon. Its pretty neat the realism of the loom machine and the threads. The details in the painting are historically accurate. The Lady of Shallot herself is wearing a lovely red dress, the color of passion and desire. She has quite the weary expression about her. Her life really is quite monotonous... Overall, this painting is a metaphor for the isolation that maidens experienced through medieval time. Noble ladies obviously did not work. The loom was meant to keep them busy and away from handsome men. The fact that she died when seeking out her lover shows the tragedy that befell such noble maidens who deviated from medieval norms. In any case, this romanticist painting deserves 5 star rating.
This cute lil painting is called Isabella and the Pot Basin. If I remember correctly, Isabella had killed her husband and she placed his bones in a Pot Basin. From then on, she treated the Basin as her lover. In Waterhouse painting, we have Isabella ,kneeling, hugging the Pot. This Pot Basin is inside the garden. What you must know about romanticism romance is that they are morbid and bizarre. Men falling for nymphs (that drown them), knights kissing statues (whose husband punches the lights out of them), The Phantom of the Opera, Fausto,ect. These kinds of morbid romances are a common place in a romantic world. Ok, moving along. I think that is everything for this crazy red head. 5 stars for Waterhouse.
The next painting is "A Tale from the Decameron" . The Decameron is the opus magnus of Giovanni Boccacio . Basically, seven women and three men escape Florence. They were escaping from the plague. In this story, once a day, two play at being king and queen. The rulers decide their leisure activities in the garden and what songs they will sing. Each day ends with a fancy song and story. In this scene, the bards are arranging a song with the maidens. In the background, we see the current king and queen. Around them we can see a beautiful garden. These young men and women are trying to forget the horrors of the plague. Its very interesting the man to women ration in the Decameron... a real bummer. hehehehe. All the costumes of the maiden are unique and their faces individualized. The three men are also up to date with fashion. In any case, this lovely painting deserves 5 star rating.
We cannot talk about medieval times without mentioning witches. Above, is a classical depiction of a real witch from medieval times. The painting itself is called " The Magic Circle". The magic circle was key to getting any spells to work. In any case, here we see a witch forming the circle. The tip of her wand paints a fuming circle. Outside the circle, crows lie watching. If you notice, the crow at the far left is standing on top of a human skull. Inside the circle, the cauldron is sending white fumes. Toward the far right, we can see all the ingredients that are going to enter the cauldron. The witch is barefooted out of respect for the vile ground that she is treading.
Over the horizon, we can see her cave and the town that is about to get curse. The witch herself has a greyish color. This is due to her vampire lifestyle. Sleeping in the day and only coming out to curse people under the moonlight. Its very interesting her wild hair and attire. You notice that she holds her cycle dagger as she makes the circle. Most spell casters always keep a dagger about them in case they are unable to cast. Her mouth is open, as if she is chanting her spell. Overall, the details create quite the eerie mysterious mood. Truly this is one fine 5 star worthy painting of Waterhouse.
Ah... Ophelia, Ophelia. She was a popular character for the romanticist artists. She is not medieval per say. However, Hamlet takes place during the medieval times. Like all you may know, Ophelia was the crazed wife to be of Hamlet. She is usually portrayed with rue flower. Rue flowers stand for regret. Around the end of the play, she hands them to all the male characters (this scene occurs after she goes mad because of her father's death). In this painting, Waterhouse has Ophelia about to climb the willow tree. This tree was the cause of her demise (she climbed it and fell... though there are some suicidal allusions in Shakespeare's Hamlet). Behind her we can see some people observing her curiously. Her face has madness written all over her. Its such a pity because she was quite the fair maiden. In any case, Waterhouse Ophelia deserves 5 star rating.
The next painting is called "Windflowers" (1903). The windflower is also know as Anemone. Its a poisonous plant. Basically, she is part of a series of maidens being sweep by the wind. All that matters in this painting, is the effect of wind on nature and on the character. The wind seems strong, its setting her hair and dress in turmoil. Its quite the lovely depiction of the wind. Truly, Waterhouse's painting deserves 5 star rating.
This painting is called "The Soul of the Rose, aka My Sweet Rose". This painting is based on a poem by Thomas Campion. I reproduced the poem down bellow (it is also 5 star worthy). In any case, roses had a lot of sensual appeal. They appealed to the sense of smell and it also alluded to the purity of the maiden. Anyhow, Waterhouse has the maiden smelling a pink flower. Her face looks quite pretty. Her dress also mimics the colors of the climbing rosebush. Her hair also has the style that resembles a red rose. She also has pearls adorning her hair. Pearls are a symbol of perfection and purity (because of its color and shape). Behind her, we see an Italian scenery. Truly, this lovely painting that appeals to the sense of smell deserves 5 star rating.
Where roses and lillies grow;
A heav'nly paradise is that place
Wherein all pleasant fruits do flow.
There cherries grow which none may buy
Till "Cherry-ripe" themselves do cry.
Those cherries fairly do enclose
Of orient pearl a double row,
Which when her lovely laughter shows,
They look like rose-buds filled with snow;
Yet them nor peer nor prince can buy,
Till "Cherry-ripe" themselves do cry.
Her eyes like angels watch them still;
Her brows like bended bows do stand,
Threat'ning with piercing frowns to kill
All that attempt, with eye or hand
Those sacred cherries to come nigh
Till "Cherry-ripe" themselves do cry.
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