To kickoff the new blog banner, I'd like to introduce you to Ophelia by John Everett Millais
Get thee to a nunn'ry, why woulds't thou be a breeder of
sinners?
sinners?
~ Hamlet
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| Ophelia |
Tate Britain, London
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| Ophelia (detail) Symbolism of the flowers in Ophelia |
"There's rosemary, that's for remembrance. Pray you, love, remember. And there is pansies, that's for thoughts," said Ophelia to her brother Laertes. "There's fennel for you, and columbines. There's rue for you, and here's some for me; we may call it herb of grace o' Sundays. O, you must wear your rue with a difference. There's a daisy. I would give you some violets, but they withered all when my father died."
Excerpt from Hamlet
Laertes:
Drowned! O, where?
Queen Gertrude:
There is a willow grows aslant a brook,
That shows his hoar leaves in the glassy stream;
There with fantastic garlands did she come
Of crow-flowers, nettles, daisies, and long purples
That liberal shepherds give a grosser name,
But our cold maids do dead men's fingers call them:
There, on the pendent boughs her coronet weeds
Clambering to hang, an envious sliver broke;
When down her weedy trophies and herself
Fell in the weeping brook. Her clothes spread wide;
And, mermaid-like, awhile they bore her up:
Which time she chanted snatches of old tunes;
As one incapable of her own distress,
Or like a creature native and indued
Unto that element: but long it could not be
Till that her garments, heavy with their drink,
Pull'd the poor wretch from her melodious lay
To muddy death.- Queen Gertrude.
Hamlet. Act IV, Scene VII.
Here is one:
In the 20th century, Salvador Dalí emerged as a surprise champion of the picture:“How could Salvador Dalí fail to be dazzled by the flagrant surrealism of English Pre-Raphaelitism,” wrote the great surrealist in an article published in a 1936 journal, alongside a reproduction of Ophelia.“The Pre-Raphaelite painters bring us radiant women who are, at the same time, the most desirable and most frightening that exist.”~ Salvador Dali
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Sources
It is a beautiful image. I can't believe I haven't seen it before.
ReplyDeleteYou are the Professor!
ReplyDeleteWishing YOU a sweet week,
with Aloha from Honolulu
Comfort Spiral
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Ophelia, a classic case of collateral damage!
ReplyDeleteI like the new look.
Beautiful new header and I love the story behind it.
ReplyDeleteI will miss your old header though.
Congrats on the new banner - a worthy choice. I've always found this a haunting painting, particularly the expression on her willing, lost face. And the river is so small here, with the shore seemingly close on either side, that it feels indecent to witness this without acting. Why aren't we jumping in to save her? Who can see this from so nearby and do nothing? But she seems already to be in the next world, as if stopping her now would be like snatching a skydiver back in mid leap.
ReplyDeleteI relate to Dali's comment about the Preraphaelite women. I also find them to be both...
Beautifully painted by Millais, and beautifully revealed by you. Thank you for this. I confess to being ignorant of it all prior to your teaching.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully painted by Millais, and beautifully revealed by you. Thank you for this. I confess to being ignorant of it all prior to your teaching.
ReplyDeletegina, it is good to see a post from you again. this is wonderful and so interesting to read. i do not know when i didn't know about her image but you have filled in the details. xoxox
ReplyDeleteTis beautiful
ReplyDeleteI'm not familiar with this painting, I've never seen it. I'm mesmerized by it, along with the story behind it. The detail is beautiful - he painted his masterpiece and put his soul into it.
ReplyDeletethanks for the enlightenment Gina. happy week to you.
I've seen this painting in London, it's absolutely gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteI didn't know the history of this painting until now but I do know it was one I visited every time I went to the Tate Gallery. The Pre-Raphaelites have always been favorites and this painting is probably the very best of them.
ReplyDeleteMy other reason for going to the Tate often was William Turner.