I'llK-KAPHAELITISM 



*>pie, Cirtin, Hlake, Lawrence, Stothard, Con- 

 stable, Wilkie, Haydon, I>e \Vint, Crome, Turner, 

 l.e-lic, niul not lem in the decorative ilii^n- of 

 houses liy the Adam* brothers, in Wedgwood ware, 

 in gold ami silver work, and in furniture. 



It is rarely that any cause for rejoicing may he 

 found in the disastrous war of the beginning of the 

 19th century, but undeniably it did grout things 

 fur tin* strengthening of English character, and this 

 was the cane in no direct ion more surely than in that 

 of art. When in tlie peace of 1814 the Continent 

 was thrown open, it is noted by three great painters, 

 Haydon, Leslie, ami CaBMkble, that England 

 stands supreme in painting among the nations, 

 and this verdict was endorsed by the judgment 

 of many able foreigners. The selection of Sir 

 Thomas Lawrence to paint the members of the 

 Holy Alliance is a convincing proof of this opinion, 

 and the recognition of Constable by France in 

 18*20 is further evidence to the same effect. But 

 alongside of virtuou influences there had been 

 at work a deadly academic dogma which the 

 few far-seeing of that generation recognised as 

 threatening destruction to the Htill struggling 

 English school, an influence which hod already 

 completely destroyed decorative design. To glance 

 at the memlters' lists of exhibitions of that day and 

 to recognise how many then held great are now 

 perfectly unknown, brings this to the proof. These 

 painters were creatures of orthodox rule, line, and 

 system, seeing whose influence Constable in 1821 

 prophesied 'in thirty years English art will erase 

 to exist.' Following np this forecast of the great 

 landscape-painter. Leslie thirty years later finds 

 the 1 11 Hi linen i of Constable's prediction in the death 

 of Turner. 



It remained for the young generation to find out 

 what lay at the root of Hie decay and also its 

 remedy. How to get free from the prejudice which 

 blinds the eye to established errors is the prelim 

 inary problem to effecting all reformation. The 

 attempt made in Cenuany in the U-iiinmn:.- of the 

 century to cultivate what was called ' Early Chris- 

 tian Art,' was participate,! in by \V. Dyce, D. 

 Maclise, and a few other artiste in England. But 

 for youthful seekers after a perfect method these 

 efforts, even where they expressed much of English 

 individuality, were not nnlioundedly promising, 

 because they lacked the full inspiration of natuie. 

 One of the earnest you ng "indents of the day was 

 William Holinan Hunt, .who, already feeling his 

 way as a practical painter, was led by circumstances 

 to study in exceptional degree the works of the 

 greatest old masters, and he iM-rceived that in every 

 school progress ended when the impils derived their 

 manner through dogmas evolved from arli-t~ 

 systems rather than from ptinciplesof design taught 

 by nature herself. He determined therefore, for his 

 own part, to disregard nil the arbitrary rules in vogue 

 in existing schools, and to seek his own road in art 

 by that patient study of nature on which the great 

 master* had founded their sweetness and strength 

 of style. Without any idea of 'forming a school,' 

 but for his own development alone, he began to 

 study with exceptional care and frankness tlm.-e 

 features of nature which were generally shirred 

 over as unworthy attention; and to this purpose 

 he found inont timely encouragement in the 

 enthusiastic outburst of Kuskin's appeal to nature 

 in all vital questions of art criticism, as expressed 

 by him in .!/.,./.,/, r,,i,,tert. 



At this period an increasing intimacy was 

 cemented between W. Holman Hunt, age<l nine 

 teen, and John Everett Millaix. who was already 

 at the age of seventeen the precociously efficient 

 medal student of the Royal Academy and an 

 emulator of the pseudo-classical Etty. 'jfhis youth- 

 ful friendship led to frequent consultations over 



the needs of the growing generation of artists, and 

 Milhiis declared his OOOMMDM in the closer study 

 of nature, which he determined to adopt as soon 

 as work to which he was committed should be 

 completed. 



D.mte (iabriel Kossetti was at this tii il-o 



fascinated by the newlv-revived principle of patient 

 st riling after nature, dut he liau not yet become a 

 i.ractical painter, and there was no certainty that 

 lie would do so. He had, before his intimacy with 

 Holman Hunt, begun the study of art under Ford 

 Madox Brown, a painter who had distinguished 

 himself by some of the most admirable contribu- 

 tions to the Westminster Hall competition, works 

 which Kossetti had the independent good sense to 

 admire. In the year 1848 (when Holman Hunt 

 was engaged on a picture of Kienzi, of which he 

 had already completed the painting of the land- 

 scape from nature, and other complicated prepara- 

 tory work) D. (J. Kossetti placed himself with 

 Holman Hunt in his studio in Cleveland Street, 

 where he followed a course of study siiecially devised 

 for him by the older student to enalile him to rope 

 with the difficulties of a picture undertaken in pine 

 experiment, in which finally he triumphed; this 

 picture is now well known as 'The Girlhood of 

 the Virgin.' 



Millais, on his part, forthwith took for his first 

 subject to be treated on the new principles a design 

 from Keats 's Isabella. This was originally intended 

 for one of a series of etchings which the three, no.v 

 formed into a hand called the Pre-Raphaelite 

 Brotherhood, had undertaken to publish. It is the 

 justly famous picture now in the Liverpool Art 

 Gallery. 



The three artists, as representing the I're 

 Kaphaelite Ixxly, appealed in the exhibition season 

 of 1849, Millais with 'Lorenzo and Isabella,' Holman 

 Hunt with ' Kienzi, 'Kossetti with -The Girlhood of 

 the Virgin,' and excited the most flattering alien 

 tion ; but by the following yearn storm of enmity el 

 the most bitter kind was raised against them. Tiiei i 

 pictures this second year were 'Christian 1'riesU 

 Escaping from Druid Persecution,' by Holmiir 

 Hunt; 'Christ in the House of his Parents,' hi 

 Millais; Kossetti's picture of the 'Annunciation' 

 he e\hihited (as he had done with his picture i 

 the previous year) at another exhibition than th.- 

 Academy. Many journals now joined theonshu 

 upon the three young artiste, but undeniably th,- 

 most damaging attack was one made by Charley 

 I tickens in Honxi-lmlil W'nrdx. (From this dnt to 

 his life's end liossetti discontinued public exhihi 

 tion.) With this attack the bitter feeling against 

 the young men so increased that in the following 

 year(lKT)l) one influential journal advocated that 

 their pictures should be removed from the walls of 

 the Koyal Academy a few weeks after the opening 

 of the exhibition. Thus, in the third year of its 

 joint existence, the new school was threatened on 

 all hands by powerful op|K>nentft, when there 

 appeared in the Times three letters from liuskin 

 denouncing the spirit of jealousy and injustice 

 with which the young men had been assailed. He 

 pointed out the merits of the works and the great 

 influence for good which the revival was likely to 

 exercise upon the English school. Later followed 

 a succession of pictures from the hands of the Ihiee 

 young painters, works the titles of which have 

 become familiar throughout England. 



Among the works of Holinan Hunt arc ' Kienr.i ' ( 1S-|!M. 

 'Christian Priest* Escaping from Druid Persecution' 

 ( 18.10), ' Two Gentlemen of Verona ' ( 1 W.I ). ' ( 'Inudio and 



Carpenter' (1874). ___ 



Innocent*' (1885). Amongst those of .1. K. .Villain an 

 Isabella' (1849), 'Christ in the House of His I'arenU' 



