A Brief Overview of Pre-Raphaelite Art

John William Waterhouse’s The Lady of Shalott (1888). John William Waterhouse’s The Lady of Shalott (1888). Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

The Bonds of (Pre-Raphaelite) Brotherhood

The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood exploded onto the art scene like a firework in mid-19th century England. Extinguished almost as quickly, their artist network survived only a few years. The revolutionary work they produced, however, and the turn in English painting they initiated ushered in a new era for art. By confronting the deeply instilled traditions of Academic painting, the Pre-Raphaelites upended the art world and are still recognized today for their remarkably brilliant work. 

Join us as we explore the origins of Pre-Raphaelite art and the elements that set it apart from other movements of the era. In addition to an overview of their aims, we’ll gander at some of the most iconic examples of Pre-Raphaelite painting conjured by the movement’s more notable members. 

What is Pre-Raphaelite Art?

The Pre-Raphaelite movement originated in London in 1848, a year that was already electrified with political upheavals across Europe. International calls for governmental reform spurred revolutions across Europe in 1848, known as the Spring of Nations or the People’s Spring, and art was already changing as a result. For example, French painter Gustave Courbet would introduce the world to Realist painting only a year later with The Stonebreakers (1849). A similar revolution was brewing in London, one that was directed squarely at the prestigious Royal Academy. There, several pioneering artists would soon challenge the institution and, in doing so, open new avenues for painting in the future. 

By the later 1840s, Dante Gabriele Rossetti and his fellow painters John Everett Millais, William Holman Hunt, James Collinson, and Frederick James Stephens, had grown tired of the standards mandated by art institutions like the Royal Academy. Even though they had trained in the styles promoted by the academy – paintings that celebrated glossy, idealized history paintings or scenes from Classical mythology – they considered them to be outdated and irrelevant. In protest, the group began to meet regularly to discuss their dislike of Academic painting. Their group was small – including the sculptor Thomas Woolner and writer William Michael Rossetti, Dante’s brother, they numbered only seven in total – but their mission was monumental. 

They started to peruse art history books to determine where art had taken such a distasteful turn and eventually pinpointed the era of the Renaissance as the culprit. To these artists, masters like Raphael had tainted art’s evolution, so they decided to pursue a mode of painting that hailed from the previous generation. They took the name “The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood” and turned their artistic focus to the styles and subjects popular in the late medieval era. 

Key Ideas of Pre-Raphaelite Art

This seven-member brotherhood united around several core principles that guided the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood’s development. These tenets included: 

A Central Focus on Nature

The Pre-Raphaelites placed at the core of their work the need to take inspiration from the natural world. Spurred in part by John Ruskin, a leading art critic of the era who advocated for direct life study, the Pre-Raphaelites used their paintings to give a renewed perspective on the natural world. 

Reality Over Idealism

Rather than continue to create the idealized forms that dominated painting from the Renaissance to the 19th century, the Pre-Raphaelites built on the pursuit of nature by emphasizing aspects of the real world in their work. Many Pre-Raphaelite paintings center on direct scenes of contemporary life that were both sober and honest portraits of the triumphs and trials of Victorian England. 

A Look at the Past

In addition to embodying a style akin to the painters of the later 15th century, the Pre-Raphaelites also sought to revive some of the narratives popular in the era. Beyond religious subject matter, which was popular among the brotherhood at the beginning, the Pre-Raphaelites also revive narratives taken from writer Dante Alighieri and techniques popularised by 15th-century Northern European painters like Jan van Eyck

Consistent Quality

The Pre-Raphaelites also wanted to return meaning and depth to their paintings, aspects they felt were missing from the work of many of their Academic contemporaries. Consistency meant creating artworks that were not only aesthetically pleasing but also rich in symbolism, narrative, and emotional resonance. They wanted to move away from superficial or decorative art and produce works with deeper messages or profound themes.

These pillars formed the foundation of the Pre-Raphaelite aesthetic and guided the brotherhood’s members to put them into practice for their submissions to the annual Royal Academy exhibition. 

The Success of Pre-Raphaelite Art

Excited about their new approach to painting, the Pre-Raphaelite artists began showing their works in earnest at the Royal Academy in 1849 and even signed them with the mysterious acronym “PRB” to underscore the brotherhood’s solidarity. Initial reactions were mixed, but by the year following excitement was growing over Pre-Raphaelite painting. Their subject matter proved refreshing among audiences who also appreciated their subtle use of color and exceptional composition development. 

John Everett Millais - Christ in the House of His Parents (1850).

John Everett Millais – Christ in the House of His Parents (1850). Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Not everyone warmed to their style, though. Author Charles Dickens, for example, wrote such a scathing critique of John Everett Millais’ painting, Christ in the House of His Parents (1849-1850) in 1850, in which he described the young Christ as “a hideous, wry-necked, blubbering, red-headed boy, in a bed gown.” Such was Dickens’ ire that it led to some of the Pre-Raphaelites abandoning the movement. The group continued to fracture in the following years, but the success of the Pre-Raphaelite approach was just taking hold. This success would seal profitable futures for key figures John Everett Millais, William Holman Hunt, and Dante Gabriele Rossetti as their paintings inspired audiences and rising artists in the second half of the 19th century.

Notable Pre-Raphaelite Artworks

The best way to get a sense of what the Pre-Raphaelites sought in their painting is to examine some of the most beloved examples of their work. Here are a few of the most popular Pre-Raphaelite works by the key artists associated with the 19th-century art movement: 

John Everett Millais’s Ophelia (1851-1852)

John Everett Millais’s Ophelia (1851-1852).

John Everett Millais’s Ophelia (1851-1852). Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

One of Millais’ most atmospheric paintings, Ophelia reveals the dramatic climax of the Shakespearean character who dies by drowning in the play, Hamlet. Staying true to Shakespeare’s words, Ophelia floats near the surface of the river, the billowing fabric of her dress keeping her afloat for only a brief moment before she slips beneath the waters. 

Ophelia captivates the viewer in part because of its almost photographic quality, a feat Millais accomplished through extensive study. He spent innumerable hours studying the landscape along the Hogsmill River near Surrey, England, to capture the varied flora along the bank. Complementing this study of nature was his study of the figure: to capture the realistic lift of Ophelia’s fabrics in the water, Millais asked his model, Elizabeth Sidall, to lay submerged in a bathtub of water fully clothed. Siddal stayed in the water so long that she came down with pneumonia, but the result captured by Millais is exceptional. 

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Ford Madox Brown’s Work (1865)

Ford Madox Brown -Work (1865).

Ford Madox Brown -Work (1865). Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

An ode to the impacts of the Industrial Revolution on Victorian societal strata, Ford Madox Brown’s Work presents various vignettes set along Hampstead’s Heath Street that showcase the rise of urban living during the era. At center men are at work digging a trench or tunnel while other men work along either side.  Paired on either side of the painting are lower-class individuals or peasants, meanwhile women with elegant parasols at left and two wealthy figures on horseback in the background remind the viewer of the social strata that dominated Victorian society at the time. An incredibly detailed painting that weaves a complex web of commentaries, Work was begun by Brown in 1852 but was carefully completed over the following thirteen years. 

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Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s Beata Beatrix (1871-1872)

Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s Beata Beatrix (1871-1872).

Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s Beata Beatrix (1871-1872). Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

In his 13th-century poem, La Vita Nuova (The New Life), Italian writer Dante Alighieri lamented the death of his true love, Beatrice Portinari. She serves as the muse for Rossetti’s Beata Beatrix, which features the beautiful Beatrice whose closed eyes and clasped hands suggest a moment of contemplation. Her ashen skin, though, and the poppy that is dropped upon her arm by the dove allude to her impending death. Beyond, Dante encounters a personification of Love in a garden framed by a view of the Florentine Ponte Vecchio, an allusion to Dante’s hometown. 

This subject held a particular significance for Rossetti, as his model for this painting was Elizabeth Siddal. The same model for Millais’ Ophelia, Siddal had become a close associate of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and married Rossetti in 1860. She died, though, in 1862, by an overdose of laudanum – adding another level of symbolism to the poppy shown in the painting – and thus is commemorated here in Rossetti’s ode to unrequited love. The second of two versions of this painting, this work includes a lower predella panel as well with an uplifting scene of Dante and Beatrice reuniting in the afterlife. 

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William Holman Hunt’s The Shadow of Death (1873)

William Holman Hunt’s The Shadow of Death (1873).

William Holman Hunt’s The Shadow of Death (1873). Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

As the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood began to dissolve, William Holman Hunt left England for an extended journey through the Holy Land. While there, he painted some of his most celebrated works, including The Shadow of Death. In this painting, a young figure of Christ stretches across the composition illuminated by an incredibly bright setting sun. Behind him are the hints of a carpenter’s workshop: wood shavings line the floor, and a saw rests by his foot. These tools also hang on the back wall on a wooden rack that, given the intense shadow from Christ’s body and his outstretched arms, foreshadow the culmination of Christ’s life in crucifixion. Following the Biblical narrative with careful detail, Hunt also artfully portrayed the humanity of the scene. Humble, hard work takes precedence in this painting.

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John William Waterhouse’s The Lady of Shalott (1888)

As a testament to the enduring influence of Pre-Raphaelite thinking, John William Waterhouse’s The Lady of Shallott reflects the central ideas of the movement despite its execution well after the brotherhood was still in force. Taking his subject from the poem, “The Lady of Shalott”, written by Alfred, Lord Tennyson in the 1830s, Waterhouse conveys a contemplative, emotive scene as the protagonist drifts along the surface of the water. The wind catches her hair with a subtlety that echoes the wispy grasses that line the banks. These articulated details bring the poem to life across Waterhouse’s painting with breathtaking detail. 

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Frederic Leighton’s Flaming June (1895)

Frederic Lord Leighton’s Flaming June (1895).

Frederic Lord Leighton’s Flaming June (1895). Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Flaming June by Lord Frederic Leighton is a prime example of how the ideals of Pre-Raphaelite painting merged with other more Academic ideals as the century came to an end. Loosely inspired by the work of Michelangelo in the modeling of the body, Leighton nevertheless articulates a vibrancy of color and authenticity that is undeniably Pre-Raphaelite in nature. The careful articulation of the gauzy fabric of her electric orange garment presents a complementary contrast to the sun-soaked sea that carries the eye out across the horizon. A first glance suggests this striking figure is curled in sleep, however, Leighton cleverly incorporates a sprig of oleander at the upper left. A beautiful blooming plant that is nevertheless poisonous, Leighton leaves the viewer to contemplate if sleep or death is at hand. 

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The Ongoing Influence of Pre-Raphaelite Painting

The innovative approach of Pre-Raphaelite art fuelled both the successful careers of the brotherhood’s members and subsequent generations of artists who found their technique captivating. Beyond artists like John William Waterhouse and Frederic Lord Leighton, the reach of the Pre-Raphaelites extends from the absorption of styles by William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement of the late 19th century to the work of Surrealist Salvador Dali, Pre-Raphaelite painting served as a continual source of artistic inspiration. Pre-Raphaelite painting continues to captivate collectors as well, in large part thanks to their rebellious pursuit of a new style of painting.