PHOTOGRAPHS: © TATE, LONDON 2019, GETTY IMAGES, DELAWARE ART MUSEUM, FV DU PONT ACQUISITION FUND, 1985, THE SYNDICS OF THE FITZWILLIAM MUSEUM, UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, BEQUEATHEDBY CHARLES HASLEWOOD SHANNON, 1937, © FITZWILLIAM COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, THE SYNDICS OF THE FITZWILLIAM MUSEUM, UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, © FITZWILLIAM COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, TULLIEHOUSE MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY, CARLISLE, © NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY, LONDON, COURTESY OF PERTH MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY, PERTH AND KINROSS COUNCIL, SCOTLANDhe Pre-Raphaelite school may have
started out as a brotherhood, but today it
is best remembered for its women. They
gaze out from the canvases, with rosebud
mouths, flowing tresses, alabaster skin
and heavy-lidded eyes. From vicar’s
daughters to shop girls, they came from all walks of life, and you
can trace their stories through the paintings they sat for.
Perhaps more than with any other movement, the glamour of the
Pre-Raphaelites has steadily increased over time. In their day,
the foremost models would have been recognised only within a
small stratum of London society, whereas now, more than 170 years
on, they have acquired a global cult following. ‘For collectors, a
portrait of a Pre-Raphaelite woman is always far more desirable
than one of a man,’ says Jan Marsh, who has curated a major new
exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery that explores the lives
of a dozen female models and artists of this genre. ‘People are
very passionate about them – you can even find dedicated fan sites.’
Some of these figures, such as Lizzie Siddal and Jane Morris, have
been elevated almost to the level of mythical beings, their humble
origins, romantic relationships and beguiling looks making them
the subject of intense interest. Alison Smith, the chief curator
of the National Portrait Gallery and a specialist in 19th-century
British art, recalls an experience with a particular devotee. ‘This
woman genuinely believed that she was Jane Morris,’ she recalls.
‘She used to follow me everywhere, insisting that she was her –
although to be honest, there wasn’t much of a resemblance.’
Despite being a source of endless fascination, the Pre-RaphaeliteT
Left: Christina,
Maria and Dante
Gabriel Rossetti
with their mother in
- Below: Dante
Gabriel Rossetti’s
‘Ecce Ancilla
Domini! (The
Annunciation)’
(1849–1850),
featuring Christina
Left: ‘Elizabeth
Siddal’ (about 1854)
by Dante Gabriel
Rossetti. Below: ‘The
Flaming Heart’ (about
1863), featuring Annie
Miller, attributed to
Charles Fairfax
Murray, after Dante
Gabriel Rossetti