Pre-Raphaelites: English Edition

Taschen Basic Genre

by Heather Birchall

Secret society: The Victorian rebels founded in 1848 as a secret society, the Pre-Raphaelites rejected classical ideals and the dominant artistic genre painting of their era for what they saw as a more spiritual, sincere, and naturalistic approach. Inaugurated by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, they evolved into a seven-member brotherhood that included poets and critics as well as painters.Moving away from the classical compositions exemplified by Raphael (hence the group s name), the Pre-Raphaelites rather turned to medieval culture and the jewel-like colors of Quatrrocento art for inspiration. Their principal themes were initially religious, but also included subjects from literature and poetry, as exemplified by Sir John Everett Millais famous Ophelia, drawn from Shakespeare's Hamlet.Inspired by the theories of John Ruskin, they were also committed to the close study of nature.This book presents key works from the Pre-Raphaelite group to introduce their reactionary principles, their dazzling colors, their interest in love, death, and nature, and their extensive influence on latter-day Symbolism and beyond. About the Series: Each book in TASCHEN's Basic Genre series features: a detailed illustrated introduction plus a time line of the most important political, cultural and social events that took place during that period a selection of the most important works of the epoch, each of which is presented on a 2-page spread with a full-page image and with an interpretation of the respective work, plus a portrait and brief biography of the artist approximately 100 colour illustrations with explanatory captions

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Art History, Reference

95 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Fefs Messina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Molto interessante, breve e conciso. Spiega la nascita a il tramonto dei preraffaeliti, un movimento che purtroppo viene spesso saltato a piè pari a scuola.
Molto originale la scelta dei quadri presentati: viene tralasciata la maggior parte delle opere simboliste di Rossetti a favore di quelle naturalistiche di Millais e di Burne-Jones; vengono presentate anche opere di autori spesso dimenticati che avevano aderito al movimento per poco tempo.
Consigliatissimo.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a big fan of the Pre-Raphaelites and I love hunting down their pictures in any gallery I can manage to land at. My latest was The Daydream by Dante Gabriel Rosetti at The Victoria and Albert Museum in London. I am particularly fond of their literary topics and melancholic scenes, and I advocate that all intense corkboard owners should pin a Pre-Raphaelite postcard in their selection of photos, mementoes and significant quotes!
Since watching the BBC series "Desperate Romantics" I have intended to read a bit more about them. This little guide had great reviews and did not disappoint me. It has an accessible and detailed introduction with a scholarly feel to it, followed by full commentaries of specific paintings. The photos are plentiful and of great quality, with very vivid colours. I feel I have learnt a lot and it has inspired me to look at their pictures in additional ways and hopefully to read in more depth about them.

[Tricia. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Lulufrances · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction to the preraphaelites, I especially enjoyed the second part with indepth painter/painting descriptions.
I think my faves are the female depictions by Rossetti, for anyone wondering. And of course Ophelia by Millais, as seen on the cover. (Fun fact: The model – Elizabeth Sidall (later married to Rossetti) had to lie in a bathtub for several sessions so he could paint exactly how the dress would look like submerged in water. Said tub was only heated by candles underneath and when those burned down during one session and the model caught a cold, her father was so angry he made Millais pay for the doctor's fees.)

[Leo sosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

avrei preferito più opere degli artisti più famosi ma ca detto che includere anche quelli meno conosciuti è interessante

[Anna C · Rating 3 out of 5]

One half star deducted for this egregious error: "Ophelia is shown floating on the surface of the water surrounded by a wealth of flowers, many of which are described in the speech given by her mother, Gertrude, the only witness to the catastrophe" (page 70). Sorry, what? Gertrude is Ophelia's mother? So Hamlet is her brother?? There is plenty of incestuous tension in "Hamlet," but not in that direction.

One half star deducted for this classic 'Sappho and Her Friend' moment: "'Love in Autumn' was particularly admired by Swinburne and a circle of homosexuals with whom Solomon was associated during the 1860s. He formed a CLOSE FRIENDSHIP [emphasis added] with Swinburne, in particular, and they both walked around Rosetti's house naked (which didn't amuse Rosetti) playing to each other's sadomasochistic fantasties" (page 92). Yep they sound like just really good friends to me.

And finally, one half star deducted for being a Pre-Raphaelite art book featuring only ONE painting by J.W. Waterhouse, my favorite Pre-Raphaelite, by a long mark.

= 3.5 stars

[emmarps · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un petit album vraiment bien fait pour en apprendre sur les préraphaélites quand on n'est pas un spécialiste d'histoire de l'art. De belles illustrations en grand format, trèèès appréciable

[Hero Diml · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good gossip and even greater art.
My favourite combination

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nicely illustrated work giving an overview of the Pre-Raphaelites and their most famous works. Ideal for the layperson. A short history of the movement is followed by a more detailed look at 36 of the more important works. I would have liked to have see more by the women connected to the movement, though it started as a brotherhood other artists came under the mantel. There are just two paintings by women illustrated at the end of the book : Evelyn de Morgan's "Medea" and Eleanor Fortescue Brickdale's "The Little Foot Page".

[Chiara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice little reintroduction with this movement but also very clear contents for anyone who approaches these artists for the first time. Easy, clear and effective in giving a general understanding of the Pre-Raphaelites.

[Andrew Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book begins by contextualising the movement excellently, then moves onto brief but full explorations of the main members of The Brotherhood. A fantastic book for anyone interested in learning and seeing more of Pre-Raphaelite works.

[Aileen · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit disappointed with this. Some of the illustrations are too small to appreciate the details, and since buying it I can no longer read it's font size, so just treated it as a picture book.

[Luciano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book! ♡

[Anna Campayo G. · Rating 5 out of 5]

gorgeous lil guide to the pre-raphaelites 🖼️🍃💫

[nat.polska · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book that quenched my need to stare at beautiful PRB paintings. My only wish is that is featured more of Waterhouse’s work!

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ottimo libro per approcciarsi alla corrente dei Preraffaelliti. Oltre a prendere in analisi le caratteristiche che contraddistinguono questa corrente, sono riportate e analizzate alcune delle
opere più rappresentative. Impeccabile la riproduzione dei quadri. La Taschen è un porto sicuro quando si ricercano testi di qualità a prezzi davvero irrisori.
Assolutamente consigliato.

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful, informative and inspiring collection. I just wish some pictures were bigger.

[Joyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

What first attracted me to the Pre-Raphaelites was not their glaring palette of bright colours, or even their fascination with the romantic aspects of the Medieval and early Renaissance. I fell in love with the Pre-Raphaelites because they were basically a gang of art school kids who, before their real artistic revolution, mocked the Royal Academy and their founder Sir Joshua Reynolds (dubbing him Sir Sloshua). They were kids who wrote nasty comments like "spit here" in the margins of books whenever Peter Paul Rubens was mentioned, and for a meek and mousy fourteen year old girl, that was pretty hardcore.

Heather Birchall offers not only a great overview of what is often considered to be the first real avant-garde art movement in England, but loads of amusing anecdotes on the artists' lives and masterpieces as well.

[Marta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pre-Raphaelites (2010)

In vista della mostra a Milano sui Preraffaelliti volevo documentarmi, e invece sono caduta in un buco nero perché, oltre alle opere magnifiche, questi artisti hanno avuto delle vite private pazzesche tra modelle, amanti, mogli, matrimoni non consumati e intrallazzi vari.
Questo libro riesce a mantenere il giusto equilibrio tra analisi artistica e contesto personale e offre delle ottime immagini dei dipinti, che analizza nello specifico.

[Victoria Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gorgeous