“Mrs. William Morris” (also “Blue Silk Dress” ) is a painting by the English pre-Raphaelite artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti , created in 1868 . At the moment, the picture is in the Kelmscott mansion where William Morris lived with his family.
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| Dante Gabriel Rossetti | ||
| Mrs. William Morris . 1868 | ||
| Mrs. William Morris or The Blue Silk Dress | ||
| Canvas, oil. 101.5 × 90.2 cm | ||
| Kelmscott mansion Oxfordshire | ||
| ( inv. ) | ||
The model for the picture was the wife of William Morris and the beloved of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Jane Morris . At the top of the picture is an inscription in Latin Conjuge clara poeta et praeclarissima vultu, Denique pictura clara sit illa mea. (Known for her husband, a poet, best known for her face, let this picture of mine add to her fame) [1] . Jane is dressed in a blue dress and sits at a table near a vase of flowers. From the letters of the artist it is known that Jane Morris herself sewed a dress and participated in the selection of a pose for the painting [2] . In composition and color, the portrait is similar to another Rossetti work - the painting " Mariana ". The fact is that the customer of the painting William Graham saw “Mrs. William Morris” and decided to order a copy of it from Rossetti, but the artist refused and created “Mariana” for him as a compromise [3] . As for many other works, Rossetti wrote for the picture an accompanying sonnet called “Portrait” [1] . Art critics of that time regarded “Mrs. William Morris” as one of his most beautiful paintings, which became the prelude to a long series of noble paintings, thanks to which Rossetti became most famous [4] [2] .
The painting was owned by Jane Morris, and then her daughter May . For some time the work was stored in the collection of Oxford, but then returned to Kelmscott again [1] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 Mrs. William Morris . Rossetti Archive .
- ↑ 1 2 'Jane Morris (The Blue Silk Dress)', Dante Gabriel Rossetti . Walker Art Gallery.
- ↑ Marillier, Henry Currie. Dante Gabriel Rossetti: an illustrated memorial of his art and life . - George Bell and Sons, Chiswick Press, Charles Whittingham and Co., 1899. - P. 158.
- ↑ Marillier, Henry Currie. Dante Gabriel Rossetti: an illustrated memorial of his art and life . - George Bell and Sons, Chiswick Press, Charles Whittingham and Co., 1899. - P. 149.