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The Magic Circle (Waterhouse Paintings)
''The Magic Circle'' is an 1886 oil painting in the Pre-Raphaelite style by John William Waterhouse. Two copies of the painting were produced. The paintings and a study depict a witch or sorceress using a wand to draw a fiery magic circle on the Earth to create a ritual space for her ceremonial magic. As was common in the period, Waterhouse repeated his subject on a smaller scale, probably at the request of a collector. History The larger prime version of ''The Magic Circle'' was shown at the Royal Academy in 1886, the year after Waterhouse was elected an Associate member. Coming after ''Consulting the Oracle'' and ''St. Eulalia'', this was Waterhouse's third exhibit with a supernatural theme in as many years. The painting was well received at its exhibition, and was purchased for £650 the same year by the Tate Gallery, through the Chantrey Bequest. The painting was extremely successful with the critics and public alike. The smaller 1886 version of ''The Magic Circle'' m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John William Waterhouse
John William Waterhouse (6 April 184910 February 1917) was an English painter known for working first in the Academic style and for then embracing the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood's style and subject matter. His artworks were known for their depictions of women from both ancient Greek mythology and Arthurian legend. Born in Rome to English parents who were both painters, Waterhouse later moved to London, where he enrolled in the Royal Academy of Art. He soon began exhibiting at their annual summer exhibitions, focusing on the creation of large canvas works depicting scenes from the daily life and mythology of ancient Greece. Many of his paintings are based on authors such as Homer, Ovid, Shakespeare, Tennyson, or Keats. Waterhouse's work is displayed in many major art museums and galleries, and the Royal Academy of Art organised a major retrospective of his work in 2009. Biography Early life Waterhouse was born in the city of Rome to English painters William and Isabella Water ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Gallery Of Australia
The National Gallery of Australia (NGA), formerly the Australian National Gallery, is the national art museum of Australia as well as one of the largest art museums in Australia, holding more than 166,000 works of art. Located in Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory, it was established in 1967 by the Australian Government as a national public art museum. it is under the directorship of Nick Mitzevich. Establishment Prominent Australian artist Tom Roberts had lobbied various Australian prime ministers, starting with the first, Edmund Barton. Prime Minister Andrew Fisher accepted the idea in 1910, and the following year Parliament established a bipartisan committee of six political leaders—the ''Historic Memorials Committee''. The Committee decided that the government should collect portraits of Australian governors-general, parliamentary leaders and the principal "fathers" of federation to be painted by Australian artists. This led to the establishment of what bec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A History Of Magic
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient Greek letter alpha, from which it derives. The uppercase version consists of the two slanting sides of a triangle, crossed in the middle by a horizontal bar. The lowercase version can be written in two forms: the double-storey a and single-storey ɑ. The latter is commonly used in handwriting and fonts based on it, especially fonts intended to be read by children, and is also found in italic type. In English grammar, " a", and its variant " an", are indefinite articles. History The earliest certain ancestor of "A" is aleph (also written 'aleph), the first letter of the Phoenician alphabet, which consisted entirely of consonants (for that reason, it is also called an abjad to distinguish it fro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sarah Bernhardt
Sarah Bernhardt (; born Henriette-Rosine Bernard; 22 or 23 October 1844 – 26 March 1923) was a French stage actress who starred in some of the most popular French plays of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including '' La Dame Aux Camelias'' by Alexandre Dumas ''fils''; ''Ruy Blas'' by Victor Hugo, ''Fédora'' and ''La Tosca'' by Victorien Sardou, and '' L'Aiglon'' by Edmond Rostand. She also played male roles, including Shakespeare's Hamlet. Rostand called her "the queen of the pose and the princess of the gesture", while Hugo praised her "golden voice". She made several theatrical tours around the world, and was one of the first prominent actresses to make sound recordings and to act in motion pictures. She is also linked with the success of artist Alphonse Mucha, whose work she helped to publicize. Mucha would become one of the most sought-after artists of this period for his Art Nouveau style. Biography Early life Henriette-Rosine Bernard was born at 5 rue de L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harry Furniss
Harry Furniss (26 March 185414 January 1925) was a British illustrator. He established his career on the ''Illustrated London News'' before moving to ''Punch (magazine), Punch''. He also illustrated Lewis Carroll's novel ''Sylvie and Bruno''. Biography Although Furniss was born in Wexford, Ireland, he identified himself as English, his father being English and his mother Scottish. He was educated at Dublin’s Wesley College (Dublin), Wesley College. His first job as an illustrator was for the ''Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News'', and when it was purchased by the owner of ''The Illustrated London News'' he moved to that magazine. There he produced illustrations of social events such as the Boat Race, Goodwood Racecourse, Goodwood and even the annual fancy dress ball at Brookwood Hospital, Brookwood Asylum, as well as acting as a special correspondent reporting on aspects of life in contemporary England, such as the scandalous divorce trial of Gertrude Elizabeth Blood, Lady ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hecate
Hecate or Hekate, , ; grc-dor, Ἑκάτᾱ, Hekátā, ; la, Hecatē or . is a goddess in ancient Greek religion and mythology, most often shown holding a pair of torches, a key, snakes, or accompanied by dogs, and in later periods depicted as three-formed or triple-bodied. She is variously associated with crossroads, entrance-ways, night, light, magic, witchcraft, the Moon, knowledge of herbs and poisonous plants, graves, ghosts, necromancy, and sorcery.Seyffert, s.vHecate/ref>d'Este, Sorita & Rankine, David, Hekate Liminal Rites, Avalonia, 2009. Her earliest appearance in literature was in Hesiod's ''Theogony'' in the 8th century BCE as a goddess of great honour with domains in sky, earth, and sea. Her place of origin is debated by scholars, but she had popular followings amongst the witches of Thessaly and an important sanctuary among the Carian Greeks of Asia Minor in Lagina. Her oldest known representation was found in Selinunte, in Sicily. Hecate was one of several de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lawrence Alma-Tadema
Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, (; born Lourens Alma Tadema ; 8 January 1836 – 25 June 1912) was a Dutch painter who later settled in the United Kingdom becoming the last officially recognised denizen in 1873. Born in Dronryp, the Netherlands, and trained at the Royal Academy of Antwerp, Belgium, he settled in London, England in 1870 and spent the rest of his life there. A classical-subject painter, he became famous for his depictions of the luxury and decadence of the Roman Empire, with languorous figures set in fabulous marbled interiors or against a backdrop of dazzling blue Mediterranean Sea and sky. Alma-Tadema was considered one of the most popular Victorian painters. Though admired during his lifetime for his draftsmanship and depictions of Classical antiquity, his work fell into disrepute after his death, and only since the 1960s has it been re-evaluated for its importance within nineteenth-century British art. Biography Early life Lourens Alma Tadema was born on 8 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Frederick Lewis
John Frederick Lewis (1804–1876) was an English Orientalist painter. He specialized in Oriental and Mediterranean scenes in detailed watercolour or oils, very often repeating the same composition in a version in each medium. He lived for several years in a traditional mansion in Cairo, and after his return to England in 1851 he specialized in highly detailed works showing both realistic genre scenes of Middle Eastern life and more idealized scenes in upper-class Egyptian interiors with little apparent Western influence. His very careful and loving representation of Islamic architecture, furnishings, screens, and costumes set new standards of realism, which influenced other artists, including the leading French Orientalist painter Jean-Léon Gérôme in his later works. Unlike many other Orientalist painters who took a salacious interest in the women of the Middle East, he "never painted a nude", and his wife modelled for several of his harem scenes. These, with the rare exa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hylas And The Nymphs (painting)
''Hylas and the Nymphs'' is an 1896 oil painting by John William Waterhouse. The painting depicts a moment from the Greek and Roman legend of the tragic youth Hylas, based on accounts by Ovid and other ancient writers, in which the enraptured Hylas is abducted by Naiads (female water nymphs) while seeking drinking water. ''Hylas and the Nymphs'' is exhibited in the Manchester Art Gallery. Manchester Art Gallery Background Myth Hylas was the son of King of the Dryopians. After |
Circe Offering The Cup To Ulysses
''Circe Offering the Cup to Ulysses'' is an oil painting in the Pre-Raphaelite style by John William Waterhouse that was created in 1891. The painting depicts a scene from the ''Odyssey''. Circe, a sorceress, offers a cup to Odysseus (commonly Ulysses in English). In the cup is a potion. Circe seeks to bring Ulysses under her spell, as she has done with his crew. Two of Ulysses' crewmen have been transformed into pigs, one can be seen beside Circe's feet on the right, while the other is peering out from behind her throne on the left. Ulysses' reflection can be seen in the mirror which is behind Circe's throne. It reflects the columns of Circe's palace, and Ulysses' ship. Odysseus, intrepid and worried about his sailors, tries to save them and on the way Hermes (the messenger of the immortals) intercepts him and tells him of Circe's intentions, advising him to find a special plant that keeps him away from the effects of Circe's drink. After Odysseus had the plant he was able to r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Enchantress (paranormal)
Magic, sometimes spelled magick, is an ancient praxis rooted in sacred rituals, spiritual divinations, and/or cultural lineage—with an intention to invoke, manipulate, or otherwise manifest supernatural forces, beings, or entities in the natural, incarnate world. It is a categorical yet often ambiguous term which has been used to refer to a wide variety of beliefs and practices, frequently considered separate from both religion and science. Although connotations have varied from positive to negative at times throughout history, magic continues to have an important religious and medicinal role in many cultures today. Within Western culture, magic has been linked to ideas of the Other, foreignness, and primitivism; indicating that it is "a powerful marker of cultural difference" and likewise, a non-modern phenomenon. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Western intellectuals perceived the practice of magic to be a sign of a primitive mentality and also common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medea (Sandys Painting)
''Medea'' is an 1868 oil painting on canvas by the Pre-Raphaelite painter Frederick Sandys. The painting was submitted to the Royal Academy of Arts for display in the Summer Exhibition of 1868 but it was rejected – most likely for internal politics and jealousies rather than artistic reasons. The picture was accepted the following year and reviewed very favourably by ''The Times'', which commented pointedly on its previous failure to win a place. ''Medea'' was modelled on Keomi Gray, a Romani woman whom Sandys had met in Norwich, England, and taken back to London to sit for many of his paintings. According to a contemporary critic it shows the enchantress Medea "...in the act of incantation, the baleful light of her chafing-dish playing in the folds of her robe, and making the pale cheeks look paler, and the ashy lips more ashy, and kindling the array of foul ingredients and witch's properties that surround her tripod - foul toads and strange roots, and images of strange god ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
