The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhoodwas a group of Englishpainters, poets, and critics, founded in 1848.

They wantedto have genuine ideas to express, to study Nature attentively, to sympathize with what was heartfelt in previous art, to the exclusion of what was conventional and memorized.

The group's name is due to the intention to reform art by rejecting what they considered to be the mechanistic approach adopted by artists who succeeded Raphael. They rejected Raphael’s art, too, because they considered it the beginning of academic art. Academic art was considered by the Pre-Raphaelites as a false and artificial art, because it wasn’t based on the observationof nature.

Inspiration

The models of these painters were medieval Italian painters of the 15th century, especially Botticelli.Botticelli was the author of Primavera, also known as Allegory of Spring. In these ancient artists thePre-Raphaelites found the most genuine art, and masterworks painted with love and care. A Pre-Raphaelite painter represents especially ancient stories, although some modern subject were rarely depicted . They used to take inspirationfrom the talesof King Arthur, too.They were fascinated by medieval culture, believing it to possess a spiritual and creative integrity that had been lost in later centuries. These artists felt the influence of romanticism.

The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was greatly influenced by nature and they used great detail to show the natural world, with near-photographic precision, like Flemish artists.

Criticism of industrial society

Pre-Raphaelites considered modern society as a devastation for people. They were influenced by the works of John Ruskin, who was an art critic, in love with Italy and Italian art. Modern British society of XIXcentury was criticized by Ruskin, and considered soul-destroying, because it can’t satisfy real needs of people . He loved medieval, craft art,which he considered most appropriateto human kind. Brotherhood was able to influence many interior designers and architects, too. But the products realized in a traditional way resulted too expensive compared to industrial products.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti

DGR was the leader of the group. His father was an exile from Italy, with a great passion for Dante Alighieri. Rossetti was an English poet, painter and translator, who founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.Rossetti worked on English translations of Italian poetry including Dante Alighieri's La Vita Nuova, a collection of poems. He became famous by creating a female type, by portraits of his models, first of all his wife Elizabeth Siddal. This female type is a mysterious and enchanting woman. He painted many oils on canvas with mythological subjects.He married the Pre-Raphaelites’ muse and poetess Elizabeth Siddal.

A painting: Ophelia

This painting is kept in the Tate Britain in London

Ophelia is a painting by John Everett Millais. It depicts Ophelia, a character from Shakespeare's play Hamlet, singing before she drowns in a river in Denmark. She lies in the water singing songs.

Ophelia's pose with her open arms and upwards gaze, remembers traditional portraits of saints or martyrs. Millais produced Ophelia in two separate stages: He first painted the landscape, and secondly the figure of Ophelia. At the first he went to the countryside to accurately depict the natural scene.

The character was modelled on the Pre-Raphaelites’ muse Elizabeth Siddal, when she was 19 years old. Millais put Elizabeth fully clothed in a full bathtub in his studio in London. As it was winter, he placed oil lamps under the tub to warm the water, but was so intent on his work that he let them to run out. As a result, Elizabeth caught a bad cold, perhaps pneumonia, because of that she had to undergo medical treatment and her father sent Millais a letter demanding money for medical expenses. Somebody says that shebroughtbackthe consequencesfor life.

A painting: Beata Beatrix

Beata Beatrix is an oil on canvas painting by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. It represents Rossetti’s dead wife Elizabeth Siddal as Beatrice, the woman who was loved by Dante. There is an analogy between the love of the Italian poet and Rossetti’s wife. Both of them died when they were young. Rossetti empathized with the great Italian poet.Rossetti couldn’t accept she was died.

A sundial is depicted, symbolof the passing oftime. A red dove (a symbol of love and passion) lays a poppy, symbol of death, in her open hands. From poppieslaudanum was extracted, the substance by which Elizabeth was killed.

In the background there is Dante on the right. He’s watching Beatrice probably leaving earthly life. She’s on the left. There is also Florence’s OldBridge (“Ponte Vecchio”) in the background. Currently the painting is kept in the Tate Britain in London