Victorian Visual Culture

My recent visit to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston was by no means my first; however, it does represent the first time that I viewed this space with an eye towards understanding Mrs. Gardner’s place as an important nineteenth century collector of (mostly European) art. In particular, I was interested in exploring her relationship to the Pre-Raphaelite artistic movement, founded in London in 1848, which rejected classicism in favor of the romantic and spiritual views that these artists felt were especially characteristic of medieval art.

I have been visiting this museum for many years, though not long enough to have seen the items stolen in the notorious art theft of 1990. Because this is a house-museum whose display was stipulated by Mrs. Gardner to remain unchanged from her original design, the now-missing items – most notably Boston’s only Vermeer (The Concert) and a rare Rembrandt seascape (The Storm on the Sea of Galilee) are still remembered through their empty frames. These vacancies cast a somewhat forlorn atmosphere to the Dutch room, but they are also an invitation to connect this collection to a bygone era, which for my purposes here is that of the Pre-Raphaelites.

The museum has changed since I first encountered it – now the visitor enters through a new modern wing designed by the famous Italian architect Renzo Piano. This new building, which contains a visitor’s center, a café, a museum store and a temporary exhibit space, is an airy light-filled glassed in area, full of vibrant orange and red colors. While pleasant to visit, I find it somewhat of a jarring contrast to the original part of the Gardner Museum, which is entered via a glass-enclosed walkway.

The new entrance to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Making this quick journey, I am immediately confronted with the magical scene of Fenway Court, a courtyard of what looks like an Italian palace, marked by gothic arches and ornate balconied windows. The entire three-story museum is built around this courtyard, which was completed in 1901, and is filled with flowers, Roman mosaics, Italian stone sculptures and a fountain.

One view of the courtyard in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Seeing this beautiful site reminds me of the Pre-Raphaelite art critic and artist John Ruskin, who in 1853 wrote the important architectural volume, The Stones of Venice. Much of the architecture in Venice is medieval in its structural details, a style favored by Ruskin and other Pre-Raphaelites whose paintings reflected this period.

The first page of “The Nature of the Gothic”, a chapter in the second volume of Stones of Venice.

I have read that Mrs. Gardner often rented a Venetian Palace on the Grand Canal, the Palazzo Barbaro, and was inspired by that setting to create this Boston building. In the 1890’s, Mrs. Gardner brought the Swedish artist Anders Zorn to the Palazzo Barbaro, where he was stimulated to paint her excitement at seeing fireworks through an open window. This picture now hangs in the short gallery on the second floor.

Anders Zorn, Mrs. Gardner in Venice

So Mrs. Gardner’s choice of setting, as well as her extensive collection of early European art, suggests a Pre-Raphaelite sensibility, though she reportedly never expressed such a philosophy. And her interest in medieval subjects is apparent in the Raphael Room, also on the second floor. Apart from a few Raphaels, this room also contains two painters who were favorites of this group. The first of these is Carlo Crivelli, whose emotionally-charged work of 1470 shows St. George slaying a dragon who had demanded a virgin sacrifice.

Carlo Crivelli, Saint George and the Dragon

Another important source of inspiration for the Pre-Raphaelites was Sandro Botticelli. His 1504 painting at the Gardner depicts Lucretia killing herself to defend her honor after being raped by a Roman official. This tragic and emotionally sensitive work was reportedly Mrs. Gardner’s first purchase of a significant Italian painting.

Sandro Botticelli, Tragedy of Lucretia

Given this resonance with Pre-Raphaelite themes, I decided to look for Pre-Raphaelite paintings in Mrs. Gardner’s collection. I found a painting by the important Pre-Raphaelite artist, Dante Gabriel Rosetti in the small Yellow Room off the courtyard. This work was created in 1861 and reportedly stemmed from an illustration in Rosetti’s own translation of early Italian poets. The emotional tone and the medieval influences on this work are striking – it could almost be placed next to paintings created four hundred years earlier. I was surprised to discover that this painting by Rossetti appeared to be the only work by a Pre-Raphaelite artist in Mrs. Gardner’s extensive collection. Nonetheless, in her selection of paintings and in her choice of setting in which to display them, she demonstrates a certain extent of affinity with this artistic group.

References:

Goldfarb, Hilliard T. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: A Companion Guide and History. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1995. Print.

Zorzi, Rosella Mamoli, Ed. Henry James’s Letters to Isabella Stewart Gardner. London: Pushkin Press, 2009. Print.

Images:

“2012 GardnerMuseum Boston USA 1” by M2545 – Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2012_GardnerMuseum_Boston_USA_1.jpg#/media/File:2012_GardnerMuseum_Boston_USA_1.jpg

“Kelmscott Press – The Nature of Gothic by John Ruskin (first page)” by Kelmscott Press, William Morris, John Ruskin – Springfield, Massachusetts, library system – en:Image:Kelmscott Press – The Nature of Gothic by John Ruskin (first page).jpg. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kelmscott_Press_-_The_Nature_of_Gothic_by_John_Ruskin_(first_page).jpg#/media/File:Kelmscott_Press_-_The_Nature_of_Gothic_by_John_Ruskin_(first_page).jpg

“Zorn, Anders – Isabella Stewart Gardner in Venice – 1894” by Anders Zorn – http://www.gardnermuseum.org/collection/artwork/2nd_floor/short_gallery/isabella_stewart_gardner_in_venice?filter=artist:3153. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Zorn,_Anders_-_Isabella_Stewart_Gardner_in_Venice_-_1894.jpg#/media/File:Zorn,_Anders_-_Isabella_Stewart_Gardner_in_Venice_-_1894.jpg

“Carlo Crivelli – Saint George Slaying the Dragon, 1470” by Carlo Crivelli (circa 1435–circa 1495) – [1]. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carlo_Crivelli_-_Saint_George_Slaying_the_Dragon,_1470.jpg#/media/File:Carlo_Crivelli_-_Saint_George_Slaying_the_Dragon,_1470.jpg

“Suicide lucretia” by Sandro Botticelli – http://www.gardnermuseum.org/collection/artwork/2nd_floor/raphael_room/the_tragedy_of_lucretia?filter=artist:3161. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Suicide_lucretia.jpg#/media/File:Suicide_lucretia.jpg

The art of poetry often elicits a mental visual more complex and seductive than any concrete image, however, one of the few exceptions may be Indian paintings.  “Aesthetic Worlds of the Romantic Heroine in Indian Painting & Poetry”was a talk given by Columbia University Professor Allison Busch and The City College of New York Professor Molly Emma Aitken at Mount Holyoke.  Because this discussion focused on “India’s preoccupation with the musicality between text and image,” language was a central idea in terms of art.  In fact, Professor Aitken declared that “Words are full of visuality.”  This visuality translates the concept that the discussion revolved around: Indian love is special with its own flavor.

After walking into Gamble Auditorium, it became clear that the audience was somehow all connected in someway.  There was a camaraderie between the people seated there, waiting to hear the presenters.  This was reflected in the friendship of the two professors.  Aitken and Busch shared the role of the presenter in a flawless and charming way.  When one was speaking, the other contributed with colorful bursts of humor and helpful side notes.  Unlike other art-based events, this was more of an interaction with the audience.  The presenters engaged the crowd in a thoughtful way, and they not only encouraged the audience to participate in their lecture, but they taught the crowd important words in multiple languages that became relevant to the art that was being displayed and discussed.

This lecture focused heavily upon the features of the female body.  It discussed, not only physical aspects, but also abstract demeanor like sly glances exchanged between an interested suitor and a coy woman, as well as the lyrical beauty that these motions and airs inspired.  The words that were taught to the audience mirrored this.  These words, such as  “śṛṅgāra,” which means “erotic sentiment” in Sanskrit emphasize the inherent desires and forbidden romance found within Indian poetry and painting.  Furthermore, not only does this type of art accentuate the female body, it portrays what the culture believed to be the “iconic woman.”  This woman, unlike the women we have read about in Victorian Literature and Visual Culture, in order to be considered iconic, must be innocent, but also skillful, coquettish, and completely stunning.  Instead of being ideal as a maiden, this woman is ideal as a possible lover and seductress.  The appeal does not lie in what is present, but in what is subtle, aromatic, and an enigma.

The main artist that was discussed during this lecture was Abd al-Rahim.  He was a poet that brought to life many of the features that are present in depictions of subjectively beautiful women.  He created “the Bather,” who is consistently seen stretching her arms above her head, playing a musical instrument, serving food, or as a mother.  These different roles are repeated throughout different art and seen in works by other artists.

Other than as a mother, however, this woman, who is defined as a heroine, is primarily a sex symbol, a server, and an entertainer.  Although she is romanticized in a number of different ways, the viewer cannot escape the fact that she is relatively subordinate to her make counterpart.  She is there for their well-being, comfort, and pleasure.

“Aesthetic Worlds of the Romantic Heroine in Indian Painting & Poetry” was a fascinating discussion regarding the role of the perfect woman’s image, as well as how her muted sexuality is conveyed to the viewer.  The poetry that is frequently incorporated within the artwork attempts to layer the image with this fantastical sense of viewing an otherworldly, unattainable, yet desirable woman.  Professors Busch and Aitken stress, however, that the depiction of this woman does not represent one person, but represents an idea.  The musical quality and movement of Indian art underlines this abstract concept.

Victorian literature and visual culture compares and contrasts with Indian poetry and painting.  It is both similar and different.  The ideal woman in Victorian literature is not only innocent, but she is continuously chaste.  Even after marriage, she attempts to retain her purity by controlling and suppressing her sexuality.  In contrast with Indian art, her sexuality is not waiting to be awoken at the right time, but forever manageable and hidden.  In both cultures, however, it is interesting to note that women as mothers is a reoccurring interpretation of what is considered attractive.

This lecture integrated multiple ideals, concepts, and mediums of art, but focused on women.  The art of women, the art of their bodies, and the natural versus posed beauty they present is in and of itself another medium.  Due to the dancing and upraised motions of the painted women, they embody this musical quality.  Because of the poetry surrounding their figures, they embody the language.  Indian poetry and painting becomes this physical aesthetic that is illuminated by women.