Art that tells stories

HYDERABAD: Continuing the tour in Manchester Art Gallery, here are some interesting stories that the paintings depict. When one understands the background and meaning behind an artwork, and with a bit of technical analysis, one can appreciate art better. This way the artist, the subject and the viewer all come closer together and the purpose is served better. As I got closer to the artist and his art through each painting, understanding human emotions through art, I felt a deep sense of bonding.

“The Waters of Lethe by the Plains of Elysium”
John Roddam Spencer Stanhope 1829-1908
(Tempera and gold paint on canvas)
In Greek mythology, the River Lethe was the boundary between earth and the afterlife. The waters purged all memories except those of happier times. Here, the good souls cross to heavenly Elysium relieved of all their mental and physical cares. Sinners also kept only their happy memories and found they were tortured by them when they crossed the waters to hellish Hades. Stanhope lived in Florence for many years and his technique, style, subjects and frames were inspired by the early Italian art he saw there. The richly coloured, glossy paint is tempera which is colour pigment mixed with egg yolk.

“Syrinx” 1892
Arthur Hacker 1858-1919
(Oil on canvas)
Syrinx was the daughter of a Greek river god. In order to escape rape by the god Pan, she was turned into a reed. The moment of her transformation is shown here. Experiencing the girl’s terror can be uncomfortable: she is desperately trying to hide but her body is exposed to the viewer’s pleasure. In the present day context, one may feel the “Me too” moment here! From time immemorial woman is always trying to escape rape, be it from the gods or from the demons. When will she ever feel safe?

“Atlanta” about 1907
Francis Derwent Wood 1871-1926 (Marble)
According to ancient myth Atlanta was a famous athlete and hunter. She was determined never to marry but her beauty attracted many suitors. To win Atlanta’s hand in marriage any suitor had to beat her in a running race. She was so fast they always lost and were killed until Venus, the goddess of love, helped Hippomenes. She gave him three golden apples, which he dropped one by one during the race. Atlanta was unable to resist slowing to pick them up. Although the sculptor has chosen a classical subject he has created Atlanta as what an exhibition audience in 1907 would have perceived as a modern, muscular woman.

“Hylas and the Nymphs” 1896
John William Waterhouse 1849-1917 (Oil on canvas)
Hylas was one of the Argonauts who sailed with Jason in search of the Golden Fleece. When the adventurers harboured at an island, Hylas’ task was to search for fresh water for the crew. He found a gladed spring and was filling his pitcher when he was encircled by water nymphs. Hypnotically, they drew him into the watery depths and although his friends searched for him, Hylas was never seen again. In Waterhouse’s hands, a myth explaining the drowning of youth amongst sinuous lily leaves and stems, becomes an evocation of sensual female flesh, an immersion into the deadly allure of the femme fatale.

“Answering the Emigrant’s Letter” 1850
James Collinson 1825-81 (Oil on panel)
Collinson was one of the members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Although this painting does not reflect their techniques, it shares their pre-occupation with modern-life subjects, most prevalent in the early 1850s. It shows a family gathered together to write back to a friend or relation who has emigrated to Australia. Over a million people had emigrated in the ten years before Collinson painted this picture. Hence, it was a subject of great interest to the public. The cottage interior looks realistic, not idealised. Similarly, the fact that a boy is drafting the reply and not his less educated parents has the ring of truth. In the days of the Internet and huge hoardings shouting loudly at traffic signals, “Migrate to Canada!! Migrate to Australia!! Get a PR Visa!!” this may not make sense, but back then, it did.

“At the Golden Gate” about 1882
Valentine Cameron Prinsep 1838-1904
(Oil on canvas)
Victorian viewers looked for the story in paintings. They recognised that the discarded lamp in this painting was part of a Biblical tale: The Wise and Foolish Virgins. The painting shows a Foolish Virgin. She wasted all the oil in her lamp, which made her miss a most magnificent wedding feast because she couldn’t find her way in the dark. Prinsep shows her late, locked out and remorseful. In fact storytelling is secondary to visual pleasure in the sumptuous decorative effect of this painting. The Islamic design of the golden door and the sensuous figure of the woman in her richly hued drapery are the main focus for Prinsep here. When I saw this painting first, I thought she is an Oriental beauty, draped in a saree!

(The author is a documentary filmmaker and travel writer; she blogs at vijayaprataptravelandbeyond.com)