Thanks, Karen! She was such a fascinating character. And part of that fiercely ambitious network of Victorians who transformed the way we look at art. ✨
Beautiful post! I’m a little obsessed with Virginia Woolf, and wonder what she thought about her great-aunt, and about her mother’s relationship to Julia.
Yeah, they were true contemporaries. Sort of amazing, for example, that Rossetti painted ‘The Beloved’ the same year (1866) that Julia Margaret Cameron photographed ‘May Day’. 🌿✨
What a great tribute to Cameron's work! Those pairings with the Pre-Raphaelite paintings are especially compelling. And thanks for mentioning my biography! :)
Thanks, Victoria! Loved your Julia Margaret Cameron bio. And especially the epilogue - the links between JMC and the Bloomsbury Group are so interesting. ✨️
Nice piece and the model for Pomona is Alice Liddell who some years before inspired Lewis Carroll to write ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’. And the model for 'Sadness' is Ellen Terry, the most celebrated Shakespearean female actor of the 19th century immortalised by John Singer Sargeant in his painting 'Lady Macbeth'. In 'Sadness' Terry is only 17 and on the eve of her marriage to the much older artist George Watts.
Such an extraordinary circle of characters! Loved reading Michael Holroyd's book 'A Strange Eventful History: The Dramatic Lives of Ellen Terry, Henry Irving and their Remarkable Families'.
A remarkable woman with a career that spanned 70 years. I have not read the book you mention but I suspect it made mention that Bram Stoker, the writer of Dracula, was Irving's personal assistant for many years.
I'll have to look out the book - I did read 'Shadowplay' the novel by Joseph O’Connor, that reimagines the real-life relationship between Bram Stoker, Terry and Irving.
Thank you, James. I knew nothing about Julia Margaret Cameron so this was an enjoyable and enlightening introduction to her work.
Thanks, Karen! She was such a fascinating character. And part of that fiercely ambitious network of Victorians who transformed the way we look at art. ✨
Beautiful post! I’m a little obsessed with Virginia Woolf, and wonder what she thought about her great-aunt, and about her mother’s relationship to Julia.
Thanks! Me too. Virginia Woolf's comic play 'Freshwater' was partly inspired by JMC's life. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Freshwater-Comedy-Virginia-Woolf/dp/0156335409
Thanks, will read!
Fascinating to see Cameron’s work and Rossetti’s side by side.
Yeah, they were true contemporaries. Sort of amazing, for example, that Rossetti painted ‘The Beloved’ the same year (1866) that Julia Margaret Cameron photographed ‘May Day’. 🌿✨
What a great tribute to Cameron's work! Those pairings with the Pre-Raphaelite paintings are especially compelling. And thanks for mentioning my biography! :)
Thanks, Victoria! Loved your Julia Margaret Cameron bio. And especially the epilogue - the links between JMC and the Bloomsbury Group are so interesting. ✨️
Nice piece and the model for Pomona is Alice Liddell who some years before inspired Lewis Carroll to write ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’. And the model for 'Sadness' is Ellen Terry, the most celebrated Shakespearean female actor of the 19th century immortalised by John Singer Sargeant in his painting 'Lady Macbeth'. In 'Sadness' Terry is only 17 and on the eve of her marriage to the much older artist George Watts.
Such an extraordinary circle of characters! Loved reading Michael Holroyd's book 'A Strange Eventful History: The Dramatic Lives of Ellen Terry, Henry Irving and their Remarkable Families'.
A remarkable woman with a career that spanned 70 years. I have not read the book you mention but I suspect it made mention that Bram Stoker, the writer of Dracula, was Irving's personal assistant for many years.
Yes it did mention Bram Stoker. One of my favourite sections was about the life/work of Ellen Terry's son - the theatre director Edward Gordon Craig.
I'll have to look out the book - I did read 'Shadowplay' the novel by Joseph O’Connor, that reimagines the real-life relationship between Bram Stoker, Terry and Irving.