News
Day School Announcement: Pre-Raphaelite Art and Literature: Connections and Influences – 26 June 2010 at the University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham
The day school, organised in collaboration with the University of Birmingham, will explore the links between the PRB and the literature of the nineteenth century. Speakers for the day include Barrie Bullen, John Holmes, Franny Moyle, Leonee Ormond, Tony Pinkney and Serena Trowbridge. For full details and enrolment form - click here.
For full details and enrolment form, download the PRS Day School Flyer - 2010 PDF file.
If you experience any difficulty with the form, please visit the Help with PDF files page.
Winning Essay for the John Pickard Essay Prize, for 2009
We are delighted to announce that the winner for the John Pickard Essay Prize for 2009 is Anne Anderson, for her essay “The Pre-Raphaelite Lovejoy: Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Charles Augustus Howell, the eponymous ‘dodgy dealer’ ”, the essay features in our latest issue of the Review. Anne’s essay examines a less well-known figure, whose relationship with the PRB was a slightly shady one. The essay brings to life the significance of Howell in the world of the Brotherhood, particularly his influence on Rossetti’s magpie habits!
In a very close contest this year, our runner-up was Hannah Carroll, for a fascinating essay entitled “Joseph Southall: A True Pre-Raphaelite?” – Hannah’s essay considers the extent to which Southall can be considered genuinely Pre-Raphaelite, and will be published in the Summer issue of the Review.
Congratulations to all who entered the Essay Prize – the standard was very high.
Launch of PRS Blog
The Pre-Raphaelite Society decided it was time to have more of a web presence and to start blogging to keep our members and anyone interested in the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood informed about what we’re doing, events we are holding, and any other news that might be of interest. So please bear with us while we get this site up and running, bookmark us and come back for more!
The blog is not intended to replace our website, which remains the primary place to go for information about the Society and its work, but is meant to be a more flexible news forum. This is meant to be a parcipitative forum, so do add your comments and let us know what you think!
The blog can be found at: http://preraphaelitesociety.wordpress.com
Publication of Special Issue of the PRS Review
“The Pre‑Raphaelite Brotherhood”
We are delighted to see the recent publication of our latest special edition of The Review, and with many colour illustrations, it contains eight essays on the PRB. Our Editor, Serena Trowbridge, invited our eight contributors to give us their views, based on their recent research, and provide a fresh look at each of the founding members of the PRB. This has resulted in an excellent collection of varied and interesting essays, covering the less-researched members such as Woolner, Collinson and Stephens, as well as new takes on the work of the Rossettis, Millais and Holman Hunt. See The Review section for essay and author details.
Publication Dates
Editions of The Review will be published in early April, August and December each year. Members are invited to submit articles, essays, book reviews, event reports and short pieces on their favourite poems or paintings for inclusion. Please read the Contributors’ Guidelines for further information.
PRS US Newsletter
Under the enthusiastic stewardship of Tim McGee, The Pre-Raphaelite Society Newsletter of the United States contains articles on American based PRB art collections, notices of upcoming exhibitions and meetings, a directory of current websites, reviews of early exhibitions and stories of the few in the PRB circle that have visited America. All material for publication in the PRSUS Newsletter should be addressed to:
Tim McGee
1209 Palm AvenueSan Mateo
California
USA 94402
Email: timmcgee@hotmail.com
Events
The Society organises a varied programme of lectures and visits to exhibitions and places of interest each year. Please note that lecture events marked with an asterisk * are Birmingham based.
Our schedule for 2010 includes:
13 February 2010
Victorian and Edwardian Sculpture in the Birmingham Collection *
Brendan Flynn, Curator of Fine Art at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, will trace the origin and rise of “New Sculpture” in 19th century Britain through the work of Gilbert, Leighton, Drury, Thorneycroft and many others, offering a fascinating insight into the Victorian imagination.
13 March 2010
The Painting Lives of Marianne and Adrian Stokes *
Magdalen Evans, freelance exhibition organizer and art researcher, will examine the work of a notable husband‑and‑wife painting team prominent in the Cornish art scene from the late 1800s to the early nineteenth century, and how the couple would have been influenced by the Pre‑Raphaelites.
10 April 2010
Into the Frame: The Four Loves of Ford Madox Brown *
Angela Thirlwell, author of the newly published work ‘Into the Frame’, will give illustrated readings from her book which gives a vivid account of the public art and private demons of Ford Madox Brown, explored through the prisms of the four central women in his life. Copies of Angela’s new title will be on sale at the event.
01 May 2010
Visit to The Barber Institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston to see the exhibition: Objects of Affection: Pre-Raphaelite Portraits by John Brett
This exhibition will focus on Brett’s highly accomplished but little known oeuvre of portraits with works that have rarely been seen in public.
22 May 2010
John Ruskin’s Shropshire Lad – Osborne Gordon – and the Pre-Raphaelite Movement *
Cynthia Gamble, visiting Fellow of The Ruskin Library and Research Centre, will trace the trajectory of Osborne Gordon, from schoolboy at Bridgnorth School to lifelong friend of John Ruskin. Gordon became rector of a country church situated at Easthampstead, Berkshire, and in overseeing its renovation, began an association with artists and craftsmen, including Burne-Jones and William Morris.
26 June 2010
Day School, organized in collaboration with the University of Birmingham – Pre‑Raphaelite Art and Literature: Connections and Infuences
This major event will explore the links between the PRB and the literature of the nineteenth century. Our speakers will include Barrie Bullen, John Holmes, Franny Moyle, Leonee Ormond and Tony Pinkney.
For full details and enrolment form, download the PRS Day School Flyer - 2010 PDF file.
If you experience any difficulty with the form, please visit the Help with PDF files page.
17 July 2010
The Pre-Raphaelites and The Old Masters *
Leonee Ormond, Professor Emerita of Victorian Studies at King’s College, University of London, will seek to explore the way in which the PRB drew inspiration from old master painting, the work of the Italian ‘primitives’ and early Flemish artists, shown at the National Gallery and in public collections on the continent.
21 August 2010
A ‘Magical House’ by the River: William Morris and his Hammersmith Home *
Helen Elletson, curator of the William Morris Society and Kelmscott House Museum, will tell the story of the “most beautiful house in London” bought by Morris in 1879, and the inspiration it provided to Morris during some of his most productive years.
18 September 2010
Pre-Raphaelite Drawing: Contexts and Controversies *
Colin Cruise, research lecturer at Aberystwyth University and curator of the forthcoming exhibition devoted to Pre-Raphaelite drawings at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, will look at the variety of ways in which drawing was a key issue for the young members of the PRB and how it remained controversial throughout the development of Pre-Raphaelitism.
09 October 2010
Visit to the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford to see the exhibition ‘The Pre‑Raphaelites and the Italian Dream’
This major exhibition will, for the first time, explore the PRB’s interest in Italian literature and landscape.
23 October 2010
Founder’s Day Lecture by Julian Treuherz *
Well-known writer, art historian and exhibition curator, Julian Treuherz, will speak on the development of the collection of Pre-Raphaelite works purchased by George Rae – a wealthy banker from Birkenhead – and his relationship with prominent members of the PRB.
13 November 2010 +++ EVENT CANCELLED +++
Visit to Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery to see the exhibition ‘The Poetry of Drawing: Pre‑Raphaelite designs, studies and watercolours’
This exhibition will provide the opportunity to view a number of the PRB’s works drawn from the museums outstanding Pre‑Raphaelite collection.
The opening of this exhibition has been deferred to January 2011 and it is hoped that the Society will visit during February (provisional date 19th February 2011).
04 December 2010
Visit to Wightwick Manor, Wolverhampton
The Society returns to Wightwick Manor, an outstanding example of an Arts and Crafts home, owned by the National Trust. The house is beautifully decorated for Christmas at this time of year.
Disclaimer Members participate in events at their own risk, and neither the Society, nor the organiser of any event, accepts any liability of any kind whatsoever, however arising.
The Pre-Raphaelite Society reserves the right to cancel, alter or postpone events if necessary. Members are reminded that they should have adequate personal and travel insurance.