Dante Gabriel Rossetti. "The Youth of the Virgin Mary" by D. G. Rossetti D Rossetti

Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828–1882) Syrian Astarte 1877. City Art Gallery, ManchesterRossetti, an English poet and artist, combined visual and poetic imagery in his painting, accompanying many of his paintings with poems of his own composition.B

Dante Gabriel Rossetti is an English artist and painter. Born May 12, 1828 - died April 9, 1882. The work of this author truly had a great influence on English artists and painters of other countries of the 19th-20th centuries. Many artists tried to imitate his unusual manner of depiction and even called it in their own way, like the “Rossetti Tradition”; the style of painting in a similar manner is called Rossetism.

Besides the fact that he painted wonderful paintings, Dante Rossetti was a poet and translator. He published his first poem, “Heavenly Friend,” in 1850. Rossetti was a fan of creativity, so many of his poems and paintings are based on the influence of this mystical writer.

His first painting, which saw the light of day and amazed many viewers, was “The Childhood of the Virgin Mary,” exhibited in 1849. After he met his like-minded artists William Holman Hunt and J. E. Millais, together they founded the notorious.

Researchers of this artist’s work say that the suicide of his wife, poetess Elizabeth Siddal, had a huge impact on all of his art. During her lifetime, Elizabeth suffered from tuberculosis and suffered a lot; in the end she committed suicide by consuming a large portion of opium. Dante Gabriel Rossetti made many sketches and portraits of his wife, and after her death they served as the basis for the depiction of women. Most of the women in his paintings are his dead wife. In subsequent years, he became simply obsessed with Elizabeth and dedicated a huge number of paintings to her.

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La Donna della Finestra Translated title: The Lady of the Window

A Vision of Fiammetta

Astarte Syriaca Translated title: Syrian Astarte

The Beautiful Hand

Veronica Veronese

The Bower Meadow

The Lady of the Flame

Fazio\'s Mistress

Saint George and the Princess Sabra

The first painting created in the Pre-Raphaelite manner is considered to be “The Youth of the Virgin Mary” by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, exhibited at the Free Exhibition and then at the Royal Academy in 1849 along with “Isabella” by Milles and “Rienzi” by Hunt.
Artists had previously turned to the childhood of the Virgin Mary (although this iconographic subject was not as popular as, for example, the Annunciation). Unlike his predecessors, Rossetti decided to depict Mary not reading the Bible, but embroidering a lily - a symbol of purity and purity, which would be more symbolic.
Initially, Rossetti planned to depict, in addition to Mary, Saint Anne and Joachim, two angels holding a stem of a lily. But one of the boy models turned out to be too active and could not stand without moving for several minutes. As a result, Rossetti had to slightly change the composition - only one angel remained on the canvas, and the place of the other was taken by a stack of books on which stands a vessel with a stem. At first (partly due to lack of funds, partly due to the secrecy of the brotherhood), friends and acquaintances posed for the Pre-Raphaelites; in this case, Rossetti’s mother Francesca Polidori served as the model for the image of St. Anne, and sister Christina served as the model for Mary.
Rossetti used many Christian symbols in The Youth of the Virgin Mary. The colors of books (“Here are the books: The colors of the virtues // They are imprinted: the Apostle Paul // put golden love above all others”). Lilies in a vessel are a symbol of purity; in addition, one cannot help but notice that there are only three flowers on the stem (the trinity of God: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit). A red cape on the window, which refers the viewer to the shroud. On the floor lie, entwined with a ribbon, seven palm leaves and a thorn branch with seven thorns - symbols of the seven joys and sorrows of the Virgin Mary. The symbolism of the works was explained in two poems - one on the frame, the other in the catalogue.
Another interesting point is that this is one of the first paintings with which the Pre-Raphaelites declared themselves. “The Youth of the Virgin Mary” is signed with the name of the artist and, at the time of the exhibition in 1849, with the unsolved letters P. R. B. But the intentions of the brotherhood may be contained in the image itself, because Maria copies the flower not from a sketch (as embroiderers usually do), but from life, which is very consonant pre-Raphaelite principle of fidelity to nature.
At the Royal Academy exhibition, “The Youth of the Virgin Mary” received favorable reviews. Perhaps this was due to the fact that the painting was simple and (unlike the Annunciation, which was exhibited a year later) fully complied with the canons. As well as Victorian ideas about girlish virtue, which should be ensured by a fairly secluded lifestyle under the supervision of the mother.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti is an English poet, painter and illustrator who became one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. In his works - paintings, poems and sonnets - he asserted the purity of art, free from academicism, and glorified the romance of the Early Renaissance. One of the favorite themes of the Pre-Raphaelites was And Rossetti’s whole life, one way or another, revolved around it. Women inspired him and became the heroines of his paintings. However, the artist’s relationship with his lovers cannot be called simple, as indeed his entire life was.

Family

Dante Gabriel Rossetti was born on May 12, 1828. His father, Gabriele Rossetti, was an Italian who emigrated to England for political reasons. He taught native language and literature at King's College. The father instilled in his son a love of Italian art, in particular the works of Dante Alighieri, which was reflected not only in the boy’s name, but also in the interests and aspirations that he would carry throughout his life.

Rossetti's mother, Frances Mary Lavinia Polidori, came from the family of Gaetano Polidori, a scientist and emigrant from Italy. From childhood, Dante Gabriel grew up in an atmosphere of art and early became imbued with his father's passion for the works of the great poet and theologian, in whose honor he received his name. His sisters and brother also had literary talent. Maria Francesca became the author of the book "Dante's Shadow". The younger sister, Christina, became famous as a poet. And brother William became a co-founder of the Pre-Raphaelite Society and a literary critic.

Education

Dante Gabriel Rossetti, whose works began to be published when he was 15, studied at King's College London from the age of 9. The young author's first creative steps were taken in literature. At the age of 5, Rossetti composed a drama, and at 13, a story. The boy's artistic education was sketchy. It began with a drawing school, where Rossetti entered at the age of 16 and where he studied under the guidance of D. S. Cotman. Then, from 1841, there was the Henry Sass Academy of Painting. Five years later he became a student in the class of ancient painting, which functioned under

Later, for some time, Dante’s teacher is Madox Brown, a romantic artist, no less passionate about literature than Rossetti. In 1848, he met Holman Hunt, who would help him hone his technique of working with oil paints while creating the first Pre-Raphaelite paintings.

Fraternity education

The secret society, which gave birth to a new direction in poetry and painting, was formed in the 50s of the 19th century. Rossetti was 18 years old at the time. But thanks to his temperament and matured view of art, he was able to become the leader of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Together with Holman Hunt and the young John Everett Millais, they come to the conclusion that the academicism that dominated the painting of that period is full of conventions and blind imitation. He stifles art, rejecting almost any innovation. According to the members of the brotherhood, only a return to the traditions of Italian art of the Early Renaissance could revive English painting.

Return to simplicity and purity

The ideal for the Pre-Raphaelites was the style of painting of the great artists who worked before Raphael: Perugino, Fra Angelico, Giovanni Bellini. The British were delighted with the simplicity and sincerity of the paintings of Italian masters of the Early Renaissance. Purity and truth, reverence for the past and romanticism, rejection of the present and hostility to academicism were combined in the works of the Pre-Raphaelites with a bold interpretation of established subjects and innovation in painting techniques. They were guided by the masters of bygone eras, but they themselves gave birth to a movement that later led to the development of modernity and gave rise to symbolism. The manifesto of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was published in the magazine Rostock, published from January to April 1850 by members of the society.

A new look at a familiar plot

For the first time, the letters P. R. B., meaning Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, appear in Rossetti’s painting “The Youth of the Virgin Mary” (1848-1849). The models for the canvas were the artist’s mother and sister. And this is one of the differences between the Pre-Raphaelites and Academicism: members of the brotherhood, in their pursuit of naturalness, deliberately refused the services of professional models, giving preference to friends and relatives.

In their work, the Pre-Raphaelites often turned to biblical subjects. However, their interpretation differed significantly from the images established in art. An example of this is one of the paintings that Dante Gabriel Rossetti painted, “The Annunciation.” In academic painting, the Virgin Mary has always been depicted as an unearthly being who respectfully accepts God's gift and the responsibility associated with it. In Rossetti's painting we see an ordinary girl, frightened by an angel and the message he brought. This interpretation corresponded to the Pre-Raphaelites’ desire for truthfulness and, naturally, caused a storm of indignation.

Rossetti - artist

Dante Gabriel Rossetti created his best works between the 1850s and 1860s. His style is well recognizable: outwardly static characters, whose faces reflect the seething inner work, a composition with several large figures in the foreground and the finest detailing of background elements. His paintings are full of symbols born from the combination of real details and fantastic images. Rossetti did not use dark tones and kept chiaroscuro to a minimum - his canvases seemed clean and bright. The artist masterfully used line in his works, giving expressiveness or tenderness to images with the help of clear or trembling contours.

Art critics define Rossetti's painting as both decorative and monumental. The latter property was best expressed in the process of working on wall paintings located in one of the buildings of the University of Oxford. The chosen subject is illustrations for the novel “The Death of King Arthur” by Thomas Malory.

Rossetti - poet

Dante Gabriel Rossetti, whose poems are often ranked in importance with the works of Shakespeare, often used the same plots for sonnets and canvases. Painting and poetry are inseparable in his work. He drew themes for paintings from poetry and filled poems and sonnets with special imagery. Rossetti also observed the ideals of the Pre-Raphaelites in his poetic works. He almost never spoke out on topical topics, filling his poems with medieval flavor. Dante Gabriel's sonnets and poems are full of symbolism and fine detail, just like his paintings. He used archaic phrases, deliberately rearranged the emphasis in words, placed familiar expressions in an unexpected context, and thereby achieved special expressiveness.

The main poetic work that Dante Gabriel Rossetti created is “The House of Life.” This is a collection of 101 sonnets. Each of them describes some moment in the poet’s life: a certain hour or a fleeting mood, a picture seen or painted. Rossetti often turned to ballads. He skillfully used ancient themes and techniques, combining them with contemporary techniques and creating works of impressive expressiveness.

Muses

Rossetti met his future wife in 1850. Elizabeth Siddall embodied the Pre-Raphaelite ideal of beauty and posed for many of the brotherhood's artists. One of the most impressive paintings that immortalized her image belongs to the brush of Rossetti. “Beatrice the Blessed” depicts Dante Alighieri’s beloved in a sleepy state at the moment when a bird, symbolizing imminent death, places a poppy flower in her palm. Elizabeth, suffering from tuberculosis, died two years after the wedding, in 1862, from an opium overdose (according to one version, it was suicide). The inconsolable widower placed his “House of Life” in the coffin of his beloved. However, a few years later, Rossetti agreed to the exhumation of the body and the subsequent publication of the poems.

Another of the artist’s muses was Fanny Cornforth, whom he depicted in the painting “Lady Lilith.” Dante Gabriel Rossetti met a beautiful but uneducated girl in 1858, and their relationship lasted almost his entire life, despite the artist's marriage and relationship with Jane Morris. Fanny often posed for Rossetti. She is easily recognizable in the paintings “After the Kiss”, “Lucretia Borgia” and the already named “Lady Lilith”. Dante Gabriel Rossetti broke up with Fanny in 1877, when the artist's physical and mental health became very weak.

Last years

After Elizabeth's death, Rossetti became a recluse. At this time, along with Fanny, Jane Morris, the wife of his friend William, becomes of paramount importance to him. Her image appears in the paintings “Proserpina”, “Mariana”, “Veronica Veronese” and many others. The artist's health begins to weaken. He refuses to participate in exhibitions, and his dependence on chloral hydrate increases. Jane lived with Rossetti for a long time with the tacit consent of her husband, who left for Iceland in 1871. However, noticing an increasing deterioration in her lover’s mental state and his drug addiction, she moves away from Rossetti, and their relationship is reduced to correspondence.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti died on April 9, 1882. And two months later there was an exhibition of all his works, which was a great success in England. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, whose biography is full of bright ups and tragic events, left an impressive mark on art. His works were imitated; masters of the late 19th and early 20th centuries studied from them. Today in art there is a term “Rossetism”, uniting masters who created in the manner of the great Pre-Raphaelite.

The love story of Dante Gabriel Rossetti and his muse Elizabeth Siddal, the love that inspired the artist to create one of his best paintings, “Blessed Beatrice,” has long become a myth, a legend that has excited the imagination of painters, writers, poets and historians of the Victorian era for almost a century and a half. .

In 1849, a young London artist, Walter Deverell, walked into the fashionable shop of a certain Mrs. Tozer, where his mother was choosing her next hat. In this difficult matter - and choosing a hat is an extremely difficult matter - Mrs. Deverell was assisted by a charming girl. Slender, with luxurious red hair and huge eyes, she made an indelible impression on Mr. Walter. He immediately asked her to pose for him, and Miss Elizabeth Siddal - that was the beauty's name - agreed. Her parents were not very wealthy people - her father and sons ran a small hardware store, and her mother and daughters were engaged in tailoring. There were seven children in the family, Lizzie knew well what need was, and therefore was glad to earn extra money, even in such a dubious way - at that time it was believed that the work of a model was akin to the work of a prostitute. And besides, Lizzie really wanted to learn to draw! However, there was no money for training, and therefore she agreed to pose for Deverell, apparently deciding that, having got to the artists (by the way, the elder Deverell was the director of an art school), she could learn something herself. And Walter was happy - finally, he found his Viola, the heroine of the film “”, which he was then working on.

In Deverell's studio, Lizzie met his friends, artists, members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. It was a very original brotherhood. It arose a year before Walter and Lizzie met, in 1848, when a group of students at the London Academy of Arts, in protest against the cold, soulless official art, proclaimed the works of the masters of the early, “pre-Raphaelian” Renaissance as their ideal. In their paintings they tried to follow the principles set out in their manifesto, which was published in the magazine “Istok” published by them.

At the Free Exhibition of 1849 in Hyde Park, Rossetti exhibited " Childhood of Our Lady" On the frame, the artist placed an explanatory poetic text as a kind of explanation, since his pictorial interpretation of the theme was far from canonical. The poem outlines a powerful time perspective. The adolescence of the Mother of God is considered as distant in the past, but an important stage in her destiny, preparing for a great mission. The contrast between the blessed tranquility of Mary the young woman and the severe shock that she will experience in the future creates a field of poetic excitement.

In the same year, he exhibited the painting at the Royal Academy along with “ Isabella"John Everett Millais and" William Holman Hunt. The debut of the Pre-Raphaelites was successful, all the paintings were sold, they could not help but attract the attention of critics and the public: I liked the figures painted brightly and clearly, the explanatory texts explained the plot and symbolic details, I was captivated by the sincerity and simplicity of execution.

Sometimes the paintings of the Pre-Raphaelites were too symbolic, too pretentious, but they were so different from everything that was done by the then masters of English art. In addition to Walter Deverell, the group included John Everett Millais, William Holman Hunt and Dante Gabriel Rossetti- the latter was the recognized leader of the Pre-Raphaelites. His father, former curator of the Bourbon Museum in Naples and an ardent Carbonari who took part in the 1820 uprising, moved to London for political reasons. It is not surprising that the cult of the great Italian reigned in the Rossetti family. Rossetti Sr. revered Dante so much that he even gave his name to his son. The father passed on a love of literature to all his children - Maria Francesca, the eldest daughter, wrote the book “ Dante's Shadow", Christina, the youngest, became a famous poetess, the youngest son William Michael became a critic and biographer of his brother. Gabriel, the most talented and famous of the children, began writing at the age of five, and at fifteen his poems were already published! Long hair, expressive Italian eyes, a nervous, mobile face, deliberate carelessness in clothing, audacity in behavior - young Rossetti was a real rebel - a romantic, but, it should be noted, this young man with the proud name of Dante, despite the lack of special zeal in his studies, possessed deep knowledge of literature and art.

And so, once entering the workshop of his friend Deverell, he met Lizzie Siddal there and was simply shocked - he saw the one who was constantly present in his dreams and dreams. Lizzie met all the requirements that Pre-Raphaelite artists placed on their models, and therefore, with the light hand of Deverell, she began to appear on the canvases of his friends - primarily Rossetti, Hunt, Millais. Dear Mrs. Tozer allowed Lizzie to work in the shop only part of the day, so the girl had plenty of time to pose for her new friends. In 1852, Milles conceived the idea of ​​creating the painting "". Of course, the Shakespearean heroine, already living in his imagination, was like two peas in a pod to Lizzie Siddal.

In the picture " Drowned Ophelia“The heroine was supposed to lie in the river, and Milles, to achieve reality, puts Lizzie in a bath, the water in which is heated by lamps. Lizzie was forced to lie in the water for hours, but when the burnt-out lamps burned out, the water immediately became cold. But Millais, absorbed in his work, did not notice anything - neither Lizzie’s blue lips, nor the fact that her whole body was trembling with small tremors from the cold. The sessions ended with a severe cold, which later turned into tuberculosis.

A Rossetti truly fell in love with Lizzie. He wanted her to belong only to him, and since 1852 the girl has been posing only for Gabriel. And not only poses, they live together in a house he rented on Chatham Place, and happy Lizzie takes drawing lessons from her friend and lover.

In 1854, Dante introduces Lizzie to his sister Christina. The daughter of a hardware store owner, and a model at that, could not please the daughter of a London professor. No, this girl will never become her brother’s wife, Christina was indignant at home, talking about her meeting with Lizzie. Seeing how passionate her brother was about Lizzie, Christina must have been terribly jealous. And Gabriel still did not want to part with his muse, who inspired him to create wonderful paintings.

Meanwhile, Lizzie made noticeable progress in painting and drawing, and in addition, she wrote poetry! She composed her first lines as a child, and now, next to Rossetti, the talented Lizzie is succeeding in both literature and art. But she doesn't feel very well.

In 1854, Lizzie's friend Anna Mary Howitt persuaded her to see a doctor. Dr. Wilkinson found that Lizzie had weak lungs and prescribed her exposure to clean air. Lizzie goes to Hastings, hoping that everything will be fine soon. Gabriel could not live a day without his Lizzie and was going to accompany her. But suddenly grief comes to the Rossetti family - the father dies. Having buried his father, Gabriel still leaves for Hastings, despite the protests of his sisters and brother.

When, after undergoing a course of treatment, the lovers returned to London, the healthier and inspired Lizzie immediately began creating a series of paintings - illustrations for Rossetti’s poem “ Sister Helen" They feel so good together - he teaches her everything he knows how to do, and she is not only a diligent student, but, most importantly, a beloved woman, devoted, faithful, selfless.

One day, around 1855, Rossetti showed Lizzie's work to John Ruskin. The famous critic was shocked by the skill and talent of the young artist and immediately bought all her paintings. Gabriel talked about it this way in a letter to William Allingham: “About a week ago Ruskin saw and immediately bought everything, even the smallest works of Miss Siddal. He said that they were much better than mine or anyone else’s, and he was simply incredibly happy to become their owner.”

So Lizzie found a patron in the person of one of the most prominent critics of England. Ruskin, seeing that the girl was in poor health and quickly tired, took an active part in her fate and paid for an appointment with the famous Oxford doctor Henry Wentworth. Wentworth, like other doctors, again recommended that Lizzie leave London, and Ruskin sent her to France. Immediately he rushed to Paris to see her Rossetti, but not for long. Business and painting called him back. And Lizzie went from Paris to Nice. Everything would be fine, but life in Nice was not cheap, and soon the girl ran out of money. (By this time, proud Lizzie had already refused Ruskin’s help - apparently, it seemed to her that he controlled her too much and determined her life). What was left to do? She sent a letter to Rossetti asking for financial assistance. He also had no money, but he quickly wrote a triptych “,” sold it to Ruskin and sent the resulting amount to Lizzie.

Lizzie really wanted to become a real artist, and it seemed like she was succeeding. In 1857, the Pre-Raphaelites staged an exhibition of their work in Marylebone's Fitzroy Square, and Lizzie was the only woman exhibiting. Her work was immediately noticed by the public, and one American from Massachusetts even bought her painting "".

In the same year, Rossetti, with new friends William Morris, Edward Burne-Jones and others who became his close friends, organized the Oxford Union debating club at Oxford University, and Lizzie traveled - first to Matlock, then to Derbyshire and Sheffield where she entered art school. She wants to establish herself in her destiny as an artist, she wants to be sure that she is an independent, professional master.

Living with the ardent and impetuous Rossetti was not easy. And loyalty to Gabriel, despite ardent love, is by no means inherent. One day he met one model - the former prostitute Fanny Cornforth. This luxurious, sensual lady captivated the impressionable artist, awakening in him lust and passion. He represented Lizzie as a symbol of sublime love, platonic feelings, and Fanny - Fanny quenched his carnal desires, and did it brilliantly.

It was hard for Lizzie to watch such an outburst of feelings from her beloved Gabriel, and she decided to leave him. Her patience came to an end - he promised to marry her so many times, and broke his promises so many times...

However Rossetti never forgot Elizabeth. Having learned that she is seriously ill, he rushes to her. She feels bad - and he, trying not to leave her alone for a long time, rushes between Oxford, where he must finish his work, and Matlock, where Lizzie lived. This went on for several months until the doctors told him that Lizzie had very little time to live. And then Gabriel finally made the decision that his beloved had been waiting for so long - he asked her to marry him. This happened on May 23, 1860, almost ten years after their first meeting, Lizzie finally agreed to become his wife. Supporting her - she was very weak - Gabriel took the girl to church, and after the wedding in the Hastings church, the newlyweds went to France, where they spent their happy honeymoon.

In October they returned home to London at Chatham Place. By this time, Lizzie was already pregnant, and her heart was filled with joy. Inspired by new experiences, she wrote the poem “ Finally».

But the red-haired beauty Lizzie was not destined to become a mother. On May 2, 1861, she delivered a stillborn child. It was simply impossible to come to terms with this grief. Nothing could bring her out of her deepest depression. Only opium helped - it made it possible to forget at least for a moment, to float away to where everyone was alive, healthy and happy... Thinking that the family, warm atmosphere in the Morris house would help the unfortunate Lizzie, Rossetti sent her to her relatives. But there was already a child there, and besides, Jane Morris was pregnant again... Watching this idyll was an unbearable ordeal for Lizzie. In addition, when she and Gabriel were once visiting their friends, she was informed that her friend Bessie Parks was also expecting a child. They returned home around eight in the evening, after which Rossetti left for classes at Working Man College. Arriving home late at night, he found Lizzie lying unconscious in her room - as it later turned out, she had taken a tenfold dose of the sleeping pill laudanum. Rossetti could not come to terms with the fact that his Lizzie was dying - he called four professors in a row, but no one could bring his beloved back to life. On the morning of February 11, 1862, she passed away. The official police version is from an accidental overdose of sleeping pills. However, there were rumors that it was suicide and that Lizzie left a farewell letter. Allegedly, Rossetti, shocked by the death of his beloved, rushed to his closest friend Ford Maddox Brown, and he persuaded Gabriel to burn his wife’s letter - society and the church condemned suicides, and Lizzie’s unauthorized death could lead to a scandal, and church authorities might not allow her to be buried in a Christian way.

The funeral took place on February 17th. During the burial, Rossetti, who was grieving the death of his wife and felt guilty before her, suddenly threw a small notebook into the coffin in a fit of grief - these were his unpublished poems dedicated to Lizzie.

Impressed by the enormous loss, Rossetti paints the picture "". It always seemed to him that his love for Elizabeth was similar to the love of the idol of the Rossetti family, Dante Alighieri, for Beatrice.

Even in his youth, Rossetti independently translated into English “ New life"Great poet. In this book, essentially an autobiographical story, Dante tells how one day he saw Beatrice and was inflamed with high platonic love for her. Back then, during their first meeting, they only exchanged a few words, but this meeting was the only one. Beatrice grew up, got married and soon died. And Dante carried his love for her throughout his life. The ideal love of the poet and his muse delighted Rossetti, although he himself loved, and quite earthly, more than one woman.

He always wanted to see his Beatrice in Lizzie Siddal. And it is no coincidence that he called this canvas, full of feelings of bitterness and loss for the one that symbolized for him high, unearthly love, “.” And this painting is dedicated, of course, not to Dante’s young Beatrice, but to Elizabeth Siddal, who loved him to the point of oblivion. The artist himself said that in this work he wanted to show death “as ecstasy, as spiritual rebirth.” Lizzie - Beatrice's eyes are closed - she is already in another world. Luxurious red hair glowing in the rays of the sun - like a halo. The messenger of death in the form of a bird throws a poppy into her palms, a symbol of peace and oblivion. In the background, Rossetti depicted Dante on the right and Cupid on the left, carrying love - a flaming heart. The face of the beloved who has gone forever is turned to the light, which she accepts with her whole being, because light is divine grace. There are no complex compositional solutions or color refinements in this painting - it does not evoke admiration for the artist’s skill. But for some reason it’s impossible to take your eyes off her - she fascinates and doesn’t let go...

The inconsolable Rossetti again and again resurrected the features of his beloved in the paintings “ Death of Beatrice", "". It also appeared in his later works... After all, despite the loss, he continued to live and create. And the story of Elizabeth Siddal did not end with her funeral.

In 1869, Rossetti was offered to publish his early poems. The artist happily agreed, but he didn’t have the texts - the only manuscript he had lay in Elizabeth’s coffin. To get it, it was necessary to commit an act contrary to all moral norms - to dig up the wife’s grave and open the coffin. For a long time Rossetti could not decide to take this blasphemous step. Finally, he nevertheless gave permission for the exhumation, but he himself did not take part in this terrible matter - he entrusted everything to his friend and agent Charles Howell. He completed the assignment entrusted to him with honor. In early October 1869, late at night, Howell and two cemetery attendants went to Highgate Cemetery, where the family's burial vault was located. Rossetti. By the light of a fire and oil lamps, they dug up the ground and opened the lid of the coffin. Elizabeth's body, Howell Rossetti later said, was perfectly preserved, she looked so much like Ophelia from Millais's painting! Her luxurious hair became even longer, and she even had to spend some time looking for a notebook of poems among the red strands. Then the coffin was closed and put back. The entire procedure was carried out in secret - neither Elizabeth's parents, who probably would not have allowed the peace of their deceased daughter to be disturbed, nor Rossetti's relatives knew about what had happened.

A collection of poems dedicated to Elizabeth was published in 1870, along with later poems by Rossetti. Many critics reacted negatively to the artist's poetic revelations - he was accused of excessive eroticism and insulting moral principles. A terrible sin - exhumation - tormented the artist and did not give him peace either day or night. He felt guilty for Elizabeth’s death, for leaving her alone that fateful evening, for allowing himself to forget about the inviolable Christian laws for the sake of worldly affairs. Insomnia, alcohol, drugs... All this undermined his physical and mental health. Only new love - love for his friend's wife Jane Morris - kept him from committing suicide. Morris probably thought so too, and did not interfere with the developing relationship between his friend and his wife. For Rossetti, Jane became a new muse. Now he wrote only her. Rossetti took many photographs of Jane in the garden of his house, using them as studies. Her unusual, somewhat gloomy face turned on his canvases into one filled with witchcraft, otherworldly beauty. In the film " Proserpina» Jane is depicted with a pomegranate in her hand in the image of the Goddess of the Underworld.

After tasting a few grains, she found herself connected with her new husband - Pluto, the ruler of the underworld. Her beauty and sensuality belong to earth, but fate has doomed her to hell. And here she is in the form of " Astarte of Syria" Beautiful, proud, smart. Her beauty seems frightening, demonic. By giving Astarte, the kind and at the same time cruel Syrian goddess of love, the features of Jane, Rossetti apparently wanted to say that Jane was gradually moving away from him.

While posing for this painting, Jane realized how much the artist was addicted to drugs and decided to stop posing. And later, realizing that she could not turn Rossetti away from his addictions and, tired of his changing moods and causeless outbursts of rage, she returned to her husband.

In 1880, Rossetti painted the painting “,” using for the portrait a sketch of Jane made in the first years of their acquaintance. The shoots of a plane tree encircle the woman, and the honeysuckle flower in her hand speaks of the artist’s unrequited love. Refinement now distinguishes the artist's style. But it becomes difficult for him to work, more and more often he starts talking...

Rossetti got completely drunk. Again and again he blamed himself for Elizabeth, for the fact that he did not give her peace either during life or after death, he blamed himself for his sins committed and uncommitted. Realizing that he was dying, he ordered himself to be buried not in the family crypt, but away from Highgate, which instilled panic in him.

The artist and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti died on April 9, 1882 in the resort town of Brighton from kidney inflammation. Twenty years after the departure of his Muse...

Rossetti He went through several stages of creativity, but his paintings were always filled with a poetic mood, he remained sincere, “emptying his heart to the limit.” Ruskin considered his painting "the main intellectual force in the formation of the modern Romantic school in England." At the end of the 19th century, the Pre-Raphaelites became a memory, but in the 60s of the 20th century they were rediscovered. Film director Peter Greenaway said that he drew inspiration for his paintings from enjoying Pre-Raphaelite landscapes. Salvador Dali writes about the surrealism of the eternally feminine in Pre-Raphaelism, confirming his paradoxical thoughts with an analysis of Rossetti’s female images - “at the same time the most desirable and the most terrifying women that can be... these are carnal phantasms from the field of “false memories” of childhood, this is the jelly from the most criminal sensual dreams... It is they who form the “lunar legend of the West.”