This contribution relates to both an exhibition recently held at the Art Gallery of Ballarat, and a book, which was partially published as an outcome of that exhibition held in the UK and USA in recent years.
At the historical Art Gallery of Ballarat, in Victoria, there were two exhibitions run in conjunction with each other earlier this year – the ‘Pre-Raphaelites: Drawings and Watercolours’, and ‘In the Company of Morris’. The term Pre-Raphaelite is now used to encompass a style of art that proliferated in Britain for much of the second half of the nineteenth century.
From the Gallery’s promotional material and associated sources, we learn, that in 1848, seven rebellious young artists formed a secret society called the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood [PRB]. This international exhibition drew from the extraordinary collections of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford [UK], to tell the story of the artists, their lives and loves, bringing to life the world of John Ruskin, William and Jane Morris, Edward Burne-Jones, John Everett Millais, Holman Hunt, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Lizzie Siddall.
Their mission was to challenge and change the popular style of art of the time. These artists loved 15th century aet, and were inspired by nature, stories, and poetry. The Pre-Raphaelite artists often turned to stories from history for example from Greek mythology, or the tales of King Arthur, and even fairy tales for ideas, as well as illustrating the works of poets of the likes of Geoffrey Chaucer. It was felt that the literature provided a stimulating springboard for the artists to generate new ideas in relation to narrative, memory, religion, and romance. Tropes of love, heroism, and beauty were subverted and Pre-Raphaelites portrayed knights and damsels in complex social situations.
During their strongest period of influence, they were generally friends, who enjoyed making and producing drawings, paintings, etc, of each other, sharing ideas, and supporting one another, particularly when their work faced criticism. They often turned to nature for inspiration, concentrating on smaller details, as well as a preference for making art outside, rather than drawing plants or animals from their imagination. In fact, they were described as the first artists to paint en plain air or outside in nature and were meticulous in their adherence to truth in nature
Meanwhile, the exhibition held in conjunction the Pre-Raphaelites In the Company of Morris] celebrated the ongoing legacy of the Pre-Raphaelites and William Morris, in the work of Australian artists in the Art Gallery of Ballarat Collection from the 19th century until today.
William Morris, was described as a Pre-Raphaelite visionary thinker, designer, writer, artist, poet, environmental crusader [well before his time] and social activist. He believed in the rights of individuals – to improve the world and that good design should be available for all. Morris’ dream was to bring art into the daily life of every person; he believed that filling a person’s soul with beauty was as important as filling their belly with food.
Further, in reaction to the Industrial Revolution of the time, Morris argued for a rejection of mass production; he was appalled by the cheap ugliness produced by industrial manufacturing and championed the beauty of methods based on medieval craft societies and as an active socialist he advocated that the maker be involved in all aspects of production. In terms of the emphasise of the Group on landscaping, Morris in observing the ill effects of factory on workers, realised that a healthy environment was linked to psychological as well as physical health and that the landscape itself contributed to well-being.
In the gift shop of the Art Gallery, there was a large ‘coffee table’ sized book titled the ‘Victorian Radicals: From the Pre-Raphaelites to the Arts and Crafts Movement’ published in 2018 by the American Federation of Arts [New York] and Del Monico Books -Prestel, 280 pages. An expensive purchase in my normal terms, but I would later consider it a well worthwhile acquisition; certainly the many wonderful illustrations of the various genres of art undertaken by the movement were a delight to examine and learn from.
From the inside front cover:
‘Three generations of British artists, designers, and makers revolutionised the visual arts in the second half of the nineteenth century. The reforming zeal and creative brilliance of the Pre-Raphaelites, William Morris and his associates, and the members of the Arts & Crafts movement transformed art and design. Selected from the outstanding collection of the city of Birmingham, England, Victorian Radicals brings together a rich variety of paintings, works on paper, and the decorative arts to tell the story of this most dynamic period of English art. Many of the works have never been published before. Among the world’s first and most productive industrial cities, Birmingham holds one of the greatest civic collections in Europe. It includes extraordinary holdings of Victorian fine and decorative art, and the finest collection of works by the Pre-Raphaelites and their associates and followers anywhere in the world.
Victorian Radicals features key paintings and drawings by the leading figures of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, including Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Elizabeth Siddall, and their mentor John Ruskin, and the second wave of Pre-Raphaelite artists, including Arthur Hughes, Frederick Sandys, and Simeon Solomon, as well as the later generation of young men and women around 1900 whose art was influenced by them.
The fine and decorative art featured in this book represents almost the full range of Pre-Raphaelite practice. Included are world-famous paintings, drawings and watercolours, delicate studies from nature, and exquisite illustrations for printed books and magazines. This fine art narrative is balanced by concurrent, interrelated developments in design and the decorative arts. Outstanding examples of stained glass, ceramics by William De Morgan, vessel glass by James Powell & Sons, textiles and printed books by William Morris, and silver and metalwork designed by leading architects of the day all extend an understanding of the diversity and richness of visual arts in England during the years1840 to1910……..This book also explores key ideas that preoccupied artists and critics at the time, relating to the status and purpose of beauty and the arts in an industrial world, the value of the handmade, and tensions between the concepts of making and designing. These are issues as relevant and actively debated today as they were a century and a half ago.’.
From the Yale Centre for British Art – about this book.
In the second half of the nineteenth century, three generations of young rebellious artists and designers revolutionized the visual arts in Britain and challenged the new industrial world around them. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, William Morris and his associates, and the champions of the Arts and Crafts movement offered a radical artistic and social vision that found inspiration in the preindustrial past and decisively influenced visual culture in Britain and beyond. Victorian Radicals brought together approximately 145 paintings, works on paper, and works of decorative art—many never shown outside the UK—to illuminate this most dynamic period of British art in an exhibition of unparalleled historical and visual richness.
Showcasing the work of Ford Madox Brown, Edward Burne-Jones, William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, William Morris, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and Elizabeth Siddall, among others, this display represented the spectrum of avant-garde practices of the Victorian period. These artists’ attention to detail, use of vibrant colours, and engagement with both literary themes and contemporary life were illustrated through a selection of paintings, drawings, and watercolours presented alongside superb examples of decorative art.
From Prestel Publishing
This generously illustrated and exciting new study of the Victorian era features rarely seen works, provocative essays, and a striking, period-inspired design.
Although the word “Victorian” connotes a kind of dry propriety, the artists working in the Victorian era were anything but. Starting with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and lasting through the dawn of the 20th century, the era’s painters, writers, and designers challenged every prevailing belief about art and its purpose.
The full spectrum of the Victorian avantgarde is in magnificent display in this book that features nearly 150 works drawn from the Birmingham Museum’s unparalleled collection.
Characterized by attention to detail, vibrant colours, and engagement with literary themes and daily life, the paintings, works on paper, and decorative objects featured reveal the myriad ways Victorian artists and artisans made sense of a rapidly changing world.
Perceptive essays and the latest scholarship illuminate the issues these artists contended with, including the relationship to art and nature, questions of class and gender identity, the value of handmade versus machine production, and the search for beauty in an age of industry.
Designed to reflect the tactile nature of the work and featuring typography inspired by the Victorian era, this beautiful volume is as fresh and bold as the visionaries it celebrates.
One reviewer wrote:
‘The book is a hefty and gorgeous illumination into the Pre-Raphaelite and Arts & Crafts Movement in England. The eleven full page colour details at the front of the book are sublime as well as the full detail colour photographs of objects starting each chapter.
This is first-rate, highest quality printing and after having had a brief chance to view the exhibit in Reno at the Nevada Museum of Art, I was thrilled to come home and read in much more detail the back stories of the artists. I am particularly interested in the women’s roles in this movement and also love seeing the archival photos of the artists themselves.
Also of keen personal interest are the books and printed materials of this time and this book is loaded with examples. Anyone with an interest in the Arts & Crafts Movement should have this book in their library. I am thoroughly enjoying the design and content of this book!’
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