Botticelli Dante's Divine Comedy. Dante Gabriel Rossetti paintings

Dante Gabriel Rossetti is an English artist and painter. Born May 12, 1828 - died April 9, 1882. The work of this author has truly had an impact big influence on English artists and painters from 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 what he wrote 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 her great amount paintings

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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

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 helped 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 protested against the cold, soulless official art proclaimed as her ideal the creations of the masters of the early, “pre-Raphaelian” Renaissance. 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 Our Lady is considered as distant in the past, but important stage in her destiny, prepared for 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 masters of that time 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 custodian Bourbon Museum in Naples and an ardent Carbonari, who took part in the uprising of 1820, 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, eldest daughter, wrote the book " Dante's Shadow", Christina, the youngest, became a famous poetess, younger son William Michael - 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, had deep knowledge in 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 light hand Deverell, she began to appear on the canvases of his friends - first of all, 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, Shakespearean heroine, already living in his imagination, looked 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. Famous critic I 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. Official version police - from an accidental overdose of sleeping pills. However, there were rumors that it was suicide that Lizzie left 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.

Also in early years 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 fell in love with her. platonic love. 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. Ideal love Rossetti admired the poet and his muse, although he himself loved, and in a completely earthly way, more than one woman.

He always wanted to see his Beatrice in Lizzie Siddal. And it’s no coincidence that this canvas full of feeling bitterness and loss for the one that symbolized for him high, unearthly love, he called it “.” 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 complexities in this picture compositional solutions, color delights - it does not inspire 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. At the beginning of 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 knew about what had happened, and they probably would not have allowed the peace to be disturbed. deceased daughter, nor Rossetti's relatives.

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, did not give him rest 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 he did not interfere. developing relations between friend and 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 as a Goddess underground kingdom.

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 emergence of 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.”

Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882) is an English poet, translator, illustrator and artist. - this is a new name for us. We haven't looked at his work yet.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti Portrait by George Frederick Watts

I noticed one of his portraits. “Bocca Baciata”. I was especially attracted by the girl’s eyes. Is there sadness in them or a dream of something impossible?

The title of the painting literally means “lips that kissed”, the words are taken from the Italian proverb, which is indicated on the back of the painting:

Bocca baciata non perde ventura, anzi rinnova come fa la luna.
‘the lips do not lose their taste after a kiss, on the contrary, it is renewed like the moon.’

Dante Gabriel Rossetti. "Bocca Baciata" After the kiss. 1859

The work was the first single portrait of a woman, written by Rossetti, thereby becoming a turning point in his creative biography. The model for the painting was Fanny Cornforth . The painting is now in Museum fine arts Boston.

In one of his letters, Rossetti explained that while painting this picture, he tried to paint the body, the flesh of the heroine, as best as possible, which, in his opinion, is not sufficiently worked out in many works of art, including works Pre-Raphaelites as well as old masters; More careful work on the image of the body could help to make significant progress in painting.

A LITTLE ABOUT THE ARTIST.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti was born on May 12, 1828 in London in the family of an Italian political emigrant, poet and scientist. Rossetti was familiar with masterpieces from childhood Italian literature, to Dante's Divine Comedy, and these impressions marked his entire work.

Multi-talented, temperamental in Italian and dreamy in English, Rossetti already at the age of 18 became the head of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, who were essentially romantics. Together with William Holman Hunt, Millais, seeing the blind imitation of old models, decided to leave the academy and rushed to "the search for inner truth"

Self-portrait, 1847

The very word "brotherhood" conveyed the idea of ​​a closed, secret community, similar to medieval monastic orders. The desire for truth and simplicity and romantic rejection of reality were combined with a retreat into a more attractive, in their opinion, past, into the world of fantasy.

Young artists sought support not only in art Early Renaissance, whose masters attracted them with sincerity of feeling, purity and simplicity of forms, and inquisitive attitude towards the world. They were fond of the Middle Ages and the poetry of the English romantics.

In 1850, Gabriel Rossetti exhibited the canvas “Ecce ancilla domini” (Latin: “Servant of the Lord”), on which he depicted the Annunciation

Russia Annunciation.

In an empty room, on a narrow bed, pressed against the wall and looking down, sits young Mary, who appears not in the image of the Heavenly Queen, but as a girl confused by the news brought by the Archangel. Before Her stands a beautiful Archangel, whose heavenly origin is indicated by the halo above his head and the flames under his feet.

In Gabriel’s right hand is a white lily (a symbol of the virgin purity of the Virgin Mary), the girl’s spellbound gaze is riveted to it, with his left hand the Archangel sends Her a message - a stream of Divine, life-giving energy. A dove, a symbol of the Holy Spirit, hovers above his hand. In front of Mary’s bed is a loom with a lily already embroidered on scarlet fabric. The spindle and the spinning wheel are symbols of the godly work that the Virgin Mary was engaged in.

The public did not like the painting “The Annunciation”: the artist was accused of imitating the old Italian masters. The realism of the image caused strong disapproval (including from Charles Dickens).

Rossetti created his most significant works in the 1850s - early 1860s. Influenced by William Blake, his poetry and mystical painting, Rossetti managed to create his own special style, symbolic, decorative, full of mystical echoes.

Rossetti builds his original composition on a combination of several large-scale foreground figures, increasing the size of the canvases to accommodate human figures and objects in their natural size. Many objects and images make up the background of the picture.

Details and characters are full of deep subtext, hidden meaning, which foreshadows European symbolism. Real characters and details, as if snatched from life, were combined in the background of the canvas with fantastic figures and symbolic elements, giving the composition a surreal appearance of a mirage.

Like the Symbolists, the heroes are outwardly static, deep in their own thoughts, but internally they are filled with intense, deep feeling, which is revealed in their gaze and gesture. The master is not afraid to exaggerate the proportions of the body or arms, unusual angles, or complex poses.

Rossetti's painting, unlike the art of other Pre-Raphaelites, is not characterized by naturalistic elements; it is not only decorative, but also monumental.

In 1850, Rossetti meets his muse, Elizabeth, and in 1860 she becomes his wife. During this period, Rossetti creates an exciting gallery of female images, fiery-passionate and dreamily sad - in them the presence of Elizabeth is invariably felt.

Under the arch of life, where love and death are,
Terror and mystery guard her sanctuary, I saw
The beauty sitting on the throne...-

wrote Dante Gabriel Rossetti, turning to beauty, the muse that inspired his art with early period splendor and brilliance up to recent years decline:

O mystery of Beauty!
Who can speak of your mighty influence?

Rossetti dedicated his work to the celebration of the ideal female image, embodied in his early deceased wife. Her unusual appearance attracted many like-minded people who deliberately avoided professional models, Elizabeth's features became a kind of canon of female beauty.

Beata Beatrix, 1864—1870. Portrait of Elizabeth Siddal

First anniversary of Beatrice's death (1853)

The woman he loved dearly died two years after their wedding. Together with Elizabeth, the “muse of the Pre-Raphaelites,” Rossetti buried the manuscripts of many poems (later published). Inspired by Dante's poetry, he resurrected her features in paintings in the guise of Beatrice - "The Death of Beatrice", "Blessed Beatrice", "Dante's Dream".

The death of his wife in 1862 became a personal and creative tragedy for the artist. Rossetti began to lead an increasingly secluded lifestyle. He refused to exhibit his works back in 1850, after a fierce attack of criticism against the Pre-Raphaelites.

IN late period Rossetti's creativity began to build his compositions on the image of a solitary, concentrated on her thoughts, idealized female figure. This image was inspired by Jane Verdun, the wife of his friend William Morris, who became Rossetti's second muse. The artist’s late style includes paintings"Proserpina" , "Mariana", "Veronica Veronese", "Monna Vanna" and others.

Proserpine.

Rossetti wrote about Proserpine following:

"She is depicted in a gloomy corridor of her palace, with a deadly fruit in her hand. She passes by, and a reflection of light falls on the wall behind her from some suddenly opened doorway, showing for a moment the upper world, and she steals a glance at it, immersed in your thoughts.

Next to her stands an incense burner - an attribute of the goddess. The ivy branch in the background can be seen as a symbol of a clinging memory."

Beloved.

In the picture, the bride lifts the veil of her veil, next to her are four girls and an African page boy. When working on “Beloved,” Rossetti was inspired by the works Edouard Manet, in particular Olympia ", created in the same year (in particular, this work led him to create a strong contrast between the bright hair and features of the bride, the other girls in the picture and the boy), as well as the works Titian

Rossetti completed the painting in 1866, but continued to make some changes to the canvas throughout his life.

“The most powerful charms and the most vivid memories are transmitted to the connoisseur of beauty through the female gaze,” noted Frederick Myers in his essay “Rossetti and the Religion of Beauty” (1883).

Veronica Veronese.

Veronica Veronese was inspired by Venetian painting. It depicts " creative soul during the act of creation." This theme is also reflected in the inscription on the frame, signed as a quotation from the Letters of Girolamo Ridolfi; According to critics, the quote belongs to Algernon Charles Swinburne or Rossetti himself.

Inscription on the frame.

"Suddenly, leaning forward, Lady Veronica quickly wrote the first notes on a pristine page. She then took the bow of her violin to make her dream come true, but before she began to play the instrument hanging from her hand, she remained for a few seconds in silence, listening to the birds that inspire her, and her left hand wandered through the strings in search of the highest melody, still elusive.

Picturesque and poetic creativity Rossetti merged: he painted paintings on the themes of poetry and poems commenting on the paintings - “The Blessed Virgin”, “A Sister’s Dream”, “The Last Confession”.

Fiammetta's Vision. 1878

Pia de Tolomei. 1868

The painting was painted during the beginning of a long affair between the artist and his model. Jane Morris , the artist's wife William Morris . The motif chosen as the plot was fromPurgatory Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri . Pia de Tolomei is a woman imprisoned and poisoned by her husband.

Rossetti wanted to show that William Morris held his wife captive in the same way. He reflected the same thing in his later work"Proserpina"During his life, Rossetti portrayed Jane in the characters Proserpine, Guinevere and Desdemona - women who were at the mercy of their husbands

Water willow.

He left and literary works: translation of ancient Italian poets, Civollo D'Alcamo, Dante, published two volumes of original poems and a collection of ballads and sonnets (1881), remarkable for the strength and melody of the language, subtle poetic feeling and mysticism, combined with passion.

Works last period lives were written under the influence of W. Morris and E. C. Burne-Jones ("Day Dreams", 1880, Victoria and Albert Museum, London).

Rossetti died in Birchington on April 9, 1882. The full exhibition of works was shown only two months after his death and was a great success.

Rossetti's work had a huge influence on many English artists late XIX- beginning of the twentieth century. Numerous imitators and disciples make up the so-called Rossetism.

The artist Walter Deverell was the first to see it. In the spring of 1849, he walked through Covent Garden and reached Leicester Square, where behind one of the shop windows he saw a woman with wonderful hair, the kind he had only seen before on angels in Renaissance paintings.

Walter entered and saw a beautiful saleswoman who had an angelic face and the eyes of the gorgon Medusa, turning all men into stone.

Shocked by the beauty of the girl, the painter did not soon wake up from his obsession. Pretending to be interested in the product, he looked sideways at the saleswoman. And after just a few minutes he was already convinced: that it was she who he had been searching for for several years without success. It turned out that the 22-year-old girl acquired good manners by watching noble visitors.

Walter invited her to pose in the studio, where Lizzie was seen by 23-year-old Dante Gabriel Rossetti, a painter serving big hopes. He was fascinated by the model's appearance and the special light that she emitted. He immediately fell in love and thought that this was his destiny, and Lizzie was his Beatrice from Florence, sung in his immortal works Dante Alighieri. The cult of the great Alighieri was established by Gaetano Rossetti. He took part in the revolt against the Austrians and fled Naples when he was sentenced to death. In the capital of Foggy Albion, he received a position as a professor, where he taught his native language to high school students. IN free time he read the poems of his fellow countryman, and even named his eldest son in honor of him.

His wife Frances Mary Polidori, although born in Britain, always remembered where her ancestors came from and, of course, was delighted with Dante’s poetry. This is what brought the pair of lovers closer together. They had four children.

Dante met the painters W. Hunt and D. Millais and together they organized a group called the “Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.”

Rossetti decided to leave a memory of his beloved by painting a picture. He arranged dates for her, on which he read Alighieri's sonnets to her. The girl reciprocated his feelings...Gabriel rented a room, and the young couple made their nest there. He forced her to quit her job and promised that they would get married. The girl knew perfectly well that this would never happen, but she loved him and tried to please him in everything. She studied drawing, read a lot and tried to write. Siddel was the first model of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.

Gabriel made many sketches and painted several canvases depicting his beloved. However, the most famous portrait of Elizabeth was created by John Millais. Ophelia is the main work of Pre-Raphaelitism. The girl seemed to give her beauty and health to this portrait. The painting was beautiful, but the model began to become seriously ill. She posed for the artist while in a bath with warm water, so that Millais could depict her golden hair in the water. But one day the master got carried away, and the water cooled down. The girl did not dare say that she was cold. She caught a cold, the cold turned into tuberculosis. The girl remained a pale shadow of the former Lizzie. Apart from Rossetti, no one invited her to pose. He still sometimes said that they would get married soon. However, he cheated on her more and more often.

Gabriel hired a beautiful housekeeper, Fanny Kronfort: she became a model for the film “Beautiful Rosamund.” Then he became interested in Annie Miller, the model for the painting Helen of Troy.

Lizzie saw everything, was jealous, but did not protest, fearing that Gabriel might drive her away.

In 1858, the Pre-Raphaelites had a new muse, the groom's daughter Jane Burden: whose rare beauty was reminiscent of a medieval statue. This beauty captivated the descendant of a noble family and the artist William Morris, who offered her his hand and heart along with his wealth.

Gabriel tried to seduce her, but was unsuccessful. Jane was a model for him too, and her appearance was captured on the best canvases. Seeing these works, Lizzie realized that Rossetti was in love again.

In 1860, Siddel became pregnant. This state has taken away last strength. She stopped eating, only a little broth or jelly, and then only for the sake of the baby. She dreamed about this child. Lizzie already knew that she would soon leave this world, but she only wanted to leave behind a child, as a reflection of her love for Gabriel.

And he finally made the final decision to marry his beloved. Lizzie is becoming less and less with great difficulty got out of bed. But she persistently sewed children’s things so that the child would wear what she had sewn herself. Unfortunately, after a difficult labor that lasted several days, the girl was stillborn. The young woman was overcome by deep depression. During childbirth, she received serious injuries, and she was tormented by severe pain that did not subside for a minute. The doctor prescribed opium, and the woman increased the dose of the drug every day.

Gabriel was working on a new portrait of Jane, and his wife was alone almost all the time. It was a blizzard in February 1862, and Lizzie was constantly shivering. Looking out the window, she suddenly saw hopeless grayness and sadness there... and swallowed all the doses of opium.

Rossetti was tormented by guilt. Almost whole year he wrote a book of poetry and beautiful illustrations: an excellent publishing deal was concluded. However, he decided to give it to his beloved, wrapping the manuscript in her hair.

He painted the painting “Beata Beatrix”: where Lizzie is in a trance. On foreground depicted sundial, which symbolize the passing of time, and an unusual bird with golden plumage brought black poppy flowers.

The image of his wife was constantly before his eyes and haunted him in his dreams. Gabriel was losing his mind, and in order to somehow isolate himself from loneliness and despair, he suggested that Jane leave her husband and go to him. But she had children, and she truly loved her husband.

In his paintings, Gabriel increasingly painted women with a golden head of hair, like Siddel’s. When her face began to disappear from his memory, in 1869, with permission from the authorities, he carried out an exhumation.

Eyewitnesses said that for seven years the woman’s body had not changed. However, this is more to blame for the imagination and Low light from the torch. Dante took the manuscript, touching the hair of his muse. The book brought him great success, largely because of its comeback story.

1st circle – Limbo

Alexander Litovchenko

The first circle of hell is Limbo, where the souls of those who were not convicted of unrighteous deeds reside, but died unbaptized. Limbo is home to ancient philosophers and poets (including Virgil): Noah, Moses and Abraham were also here - all the righteous men mentioned in the Old Testament, but then they were allowed to ascend to Paradise.
Guardian: Charon.
Punishment: painless grief.

2nd circle - Voluptuousness

At the entrance, travelers are greeted by King Minos ( fair judge and the father of the Minotaur), who distributes souls in circles. Here everything is covered in darkness and a storm is constantly raging - gusts of wind throw the souls of those who were pushed onto the path of sin by love. If you coveted someone else’s wife or husband, lived in debauchery, your soul will float restless over the abyss forever and ever.
Guardian: Minos.
Punishment: Torsion and torment by a storm.

3rd circle - Gluttony

Gluttons are imprisoned in this circle: icy rain always pours here, souls get stuck in dirty slurry, and the demon Cerberus gnaws the prisoners who fall under the clawed paw.
Guardian: Cerberus.
Punishment: Rotting in the sun and rain.

4th circle - Greed

Gustave Dore

The abode of those who “spent and hoarded unworthily,” a gigantic plain on which stand two crowds. Pushing loads with their chests, they walk towards each other, collide and then separate to start all over again.
Guardian: Plutos.
Punishment: Eternal dispute.

5 circle - Anger and Laziness

Gustave Dore

A giant river, or rather the Stygian swamp, where people are exiled for laziness and anger. All circles up to the fifth are a haven for the intemperate, and intemperance is considered a lesser sin than “malice or violent bestiality,” and therefore the suffering of souls there is alleviated compared to those who live in the outer circles.
Guard: Phlegius.
Punishment: Eternal fight up to your neck in the swamp.

6th circle - For heretics and false teachers



Furies

The flaming city of Dit (the Romans called Hades, the god of the underworld, Dit), which is guarded by sister Furies with balls of snakes instead of hair. Inescapable sorrow reigns here, and heretics and false teachers rest in open tombs, as if in eternal ovens. The transition to the seventh circle is fenced off by a fetid abyss.
Guardians: Furies.
Punishment: Be a ghost in a hot grave.

7th circle - For rapists and murderers of all stripes

Gustave Dore

The steppes, where it always rains fire, and the same thing appears to the eye: the terrible torment of souls stained with violence. This includes tyrants, murderers, suicides, blasphemers, and even gamblers (who senselessly destroyed their own property). Sinners are torn apart by dogs, hunted by harpies, boiled in scarlet boiling water, turned into trees and forced to run under streams of flame.
Guardian: Minotaur.
Punishment: boil in a bloody river, languish in a hot desert near a burning stream, be tormented by harpies and hound dogs.

8th circle - For those who deceived those who did not trust

Sandro Botticelli

The haven of pimps and seducers, consists of 10 ditches (Zlopazuchi, Evil Crevices), in the center of which lies the most terrible ninth circle of Hell. Soothsayers, fortune-tellers, witches, bribe-takers, hypocrites, flatterers, thieves, alchemists, false witnesses and counterfeiters are tormented nearby. Priests who traded in church positions fall into this same circle.
Guardian: Geryon.
Punishment: sinners walk in two oncoming streams, scourged by demons, stuck in fetid feces, some of their bodies are chained in rocks, fire flows down their feet. Someone is boiling in the tar, and if he sticks out, the devils will stick the hooks. Those clad in lead robes are placed on a red-hot brazier, sinners are gutted and tormented by vermin, leprosy and lichen.

9th circle - For apostates and traitors of all kinds

Gustave Dore

In the very center of the underworld is the icy Lake Cocytus. It's like Viking hell, it's incredibly cold here. Here lie the apostates frozen in the ice, and the main one is Lucifer, the fallen angel. Judas Iscariot (who betrayed Christ), Brutus (who betrayed the trust of Julius Caesar) and Cassius (also a participant in the conspiracy against Caesar) are tormented in the three jaws of Lucifer.
Guardians: giants Briareus, Ephialtes, Antaeus.
Punishment: Eternal torment in an icy lake.