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Watercolour - Love

Love

  • Object:

    Watercolour

  • Place of origin:

    England, Great Britain (made)

  • Date:

    1880s (painted)

  • Artist/Maker:

    Burne-Jones, Edward Coley (Sir), born 1833 - died 1898 (artist)

  • Materials and Techniques:

    Watercolour

  • Credit Line:

    Given by the Hon. Mrs Margaret Post

  • Museum number:

    E.838-1937

  • Gallery location:

    In store

  • Download image

This watercolour is inscribed with a line from the Commedia (the Divine Comedy) by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321): 'L'mour che muove il sole e l'altre stelle' (The love that moves the sun and other stars'). It is a highly finished design for a large needlework panel, but now it is considered to be a great watercolour in its own right. Burne-Jones (1833-1898) made several such designs, some of which were worked up into tapestry or needlework by the young Frances Graham, with whom Burne Jones later fell in love.

Physical description

Cartoon for needle work picture, 'Love with bow surrounded by children and standing beneath a cloud of doves'. The painting is inscribed with a line from Dante's Divina Commedia: 'L'amor che muove il sole e l'altre stelle' (the love that moves the sun and the other stars). It is a highly finished design for a large needlework panel; Burne-Jones made several such designs, often carried out, like this example, by Frances Graham. At the time of this painting, Burne-Jones was also working on his famous King Cophetua and the Beggar-maid. The model for the beggar-maid was Frances Graham, and Burne-Jones had fallen in love with her. In 1883, to his great dismay, she announced her impending marriage, and he painted in anenomes - the symbol of rejected love and death - around the figure of the beggar-maid. Here too, in Love, the colours of anemones predominate, rich scarlets and purples against cobalt and turquoise. Just as Dante lost his beloved Beatrice, and Rossetti his Lizzie, so Burne-Jones, on more than one occasion, lost his heart to those like Frances who were unable to return his love.

Place of Origin

England, Great Britain (made)

Date

1880s (painted)

Artist/maker

Burne-Jones, Edward Coley (Sir), born 1833 - died 1898 (artist)

Materials and Techniques

Watercolour

Dimensions

Height: 226.5 cm framed, Width: 121.5 cm framed

Subjects depicted

Flowers; Birds; Costume; Children; Weapons

Categories

Drawings; Paintings

Collection code

PDP

Download image
Qr_O15031
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