Art Gallery Trip

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:18 am

Next, The Bathers by Fred Walker, R.A., which looks creepily like the sort of thing that would hang on the living room wall of a pederast ...

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:21 am

Next, the Beguiling Of Merlin by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones. This painting not only ties in with the Vivien And Merlin painting by Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale featured earlier, as a prime example of Arthurian legend depicted in Pre-Raphaelite art, but has an amusing subtext. The model for the enchantress Nimuë was a Greek beauty by the name of Maria Zambaco, with whom Burne-Jones had a steamy, torrid and tempestuous affair.

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:24 am

Next, The Daphnephoria by Frederick, Lord Leighton. I couldn't fit this huge canvas into the frame in one go (it's 26 feet wide!), so I've split it into two parts. Sadly, reflections in the glass totally ruin this image (sigh) ...

The five young ladies in the long floral looking dresses were modelled by the Dene Sisters, of whom Dorothy Dene was a long-time model of Leighton's. Oddly enough, despite being surrounded by lots of nubile young ladies in his studio, rumours persist that Leighton was actually gay. Though I suspect it's nothing more than blind speculation based upon the fact that he never married.

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:27 am

And here's part two of this enormous canvas. Again, the autofocus mechanism was fooled by glass reflections (sigh) ...

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:28 am

Another Leighton painting, this time The Garden Of The Heseprides ...

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:30 am

Next up, The Tree Of Forgiveness by Burne-Jones, a companion painting depicting the same subject in Birmingham Art Gallery being known as Phyllis And Demophöon ... and again, the female lead is modelled by the nubile and passionate Maria Zambaco ...

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:32 am

And now, it's time for a brace of William Etty pictures. I've said a lot about this artist in the past, basically mentioning that he was basically a dirty old man who got his rocks off by having nude women in his studio. I also mentioned the infamous Andromeda, which he re-worked to try and make the painting "respectable", by recasting the subject as a mythological heroine, only to fail spectacularly by making her look like an advert for a kinky BDSM fetish club.

Well, here she is ... Andromeda, looking as if she's enjoying her spot of bondage.

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:34 am

Next up, another Etty painting, this time Aurora And Zephyr. This is the one I got a bit confused over in a past post, where I thought it was actually Flora And The Zephyrs. Confusion over!

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:35 am

Next up, Etty's rendition of The Triumph Of Cleopatra. Another excuse for him to paint lots of naked women.

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:39 am

Now, away from the paintings, it's time for lots of pottery. Lord Leverhulme collected tons of the stuff, and I literally mean tons of it. If you weighed his collection, it would probably need two Mack trucks to transport it all. Much of this pottery is Chinese, and Lord Leverhulme apparently found himself bitten by the Oriental fashion bug pretty hard. As you will see soon!

First, several photos of a model of a pagoda ...

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:43 am

Next up, a Chinese kettle, some water droppers, an assortment of vases, a plate, and some other assorted bits of Chinese pottery including a pair of Chinese lions ...

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:45 am

More Chinese vases, including a huge blue and gold one that on its own probably weighs 200 pounds, and an elephant statue (one of a pair) ...

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:47 am

Next, the miniature Terracotta Army that Lord Leverhulme collected ...

Post by **Calilasseia** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 1:50 am

Next, a honking big collection of Jasperware pottery (I think - it's blue Wedgwood, and all original). There's about 300 pounds of pottery in these glass cases. Couple of close ups, and the panorama shots.