Page 16 - History 2020

architecture promoted by A.W.N.Pugin who was a convert to Roman Catholicism and

self-styled medievalist who believed the evils of the time were rooted in the
abandonment of Christian virtues that had begun with the Reformation. He was
principally engaged in church building and recreating the better world of the Middle
Ages where beauty was all around in contrast to factory chimneys, Methodist chapels
and the Panopticon. His influence was passed to painters who were dissatisfied with
the world around them. Pugin’s greatest achievement was The House of Lords in the
new Palace of Westminster. Charles Barry was the architect and Pugin was
responsible for much of the inside. There were niches in the new Parliamentary

building that required large murals but there was no precedent for this in Britain. All
our large murals had been destroyed during the Reformation and fresco was
unsuitable for the climate in England. Prince Albert suggested asking Peter Von
Cornelius, a German artist and Nazarene, to undertake the work but this was not
acceptable and some of the work eventually went to William Dyce. However this
interest in fresco resulted in artists, including those of the future PRB, examining the
sharp linear quality of the engravings and designs for the frescoes of the old Italian

masters. According to Hunt, it was the examination of these illustrations that
prompted the PRB to form.
Another breakthrough came in 1847 when the National Gallery acquired the
San Benedetto Altarpiece,1407-9, by Monaco as a curiosity or primitive and example
of bad painting. It depicts blocks of red, pureness of light, colour and patterning in
the background. The students saw this and were impressed by the clear linear quality
and bright colours. Similarly, The Arnolfini Marriage, 1434, by Van Eyck was acquired
around the same time also as an example of bad art but the students were inspired

by the clarity and fine brushwork. Ironically this painting is now considered to be a
fine example of Flemish art of the Northern Renaissance.

So, with all these scenarios in place, it can be understood why the PRB was formed
in1848. They sought inspiration in history, the Bible and literature, using the clear
bright colours and simplicity associated early Italian and medieval art whilst also

observing carefully the world around them. They drew each other and friends were
recruited as models to add realism.

Paintings of the PRB
Isabella, 1848, Millais, Walker Art Gallery, was the first painting exhibited at the
Royal Academy in the Pre-Raphaelite style. Based on the work of an 13th century
poet and retold by Keats in 1818 the painting is realistic with very detailed brushwork
and shows a new way of looking at a classical subject. The painting is particularly
significant because on the foot of the stool on which Isabella sits are carved the