Dante Gabriel Rossetti

 

Dante Gabriel Rossetti
the Beloved ('The Bride') 1865-6
Oil on canvas
support: 825 x 762 mm frame: 1220 x 1110 x 83 mm
Purchased with assistance from Sir Arthur Du Cros Bt and Sir Otto Beit KCMG through the Art Fund 1916

 

The Beloved, also known as The Bride, is an oil painting on canvas. It was painted by Dante Gabriel Rossetti in 1865 and is currently housed at Tate Britain. The painting is exclusive in Rossetti's series of beauties of the 1860s. It portrays more than one figure, and it is the only painting by Rossetti which shows a black figure. The painting is inspired by the biblical Song of Solomon, a love poem from the Bible with a dual interpretation;  on one hand it depicts erotic imagery recounting physical love and on the other hand it can be interpreted as the spiritual love of God. In the painting the bride is seen moving back her veil, and is accompanied by her bridesmaids. There is a high colour contrast between the red hair and pale skin of the bride, the African skin of the page boy, and also the shades of brunette hair and dark skin tones of the bridesmaids. The bride in Rossetti’s painting is wearing a Peruvian head-dress and Japanese gown.

The painting also includes two passages from the Song of Solomon, inscribed on the frame which are:

{"My beloved is mine and I am his (2:16) and Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine (1:2)"

 

2013.  [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/rossetti-the-beloved-the-bride-n03053. [Accessed 4 April 2013].

The Beloved (Rossetti painting) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 2013. The Beloved (Rossetti painting) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beloved_(Rossetti_painting). [Accessed 4 April 2013].

Artwork highlights - 'The Beloved' 1865-6, by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828 - 1882) .2013. Artwork highlights - 'The Beloved' 1865-6, by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828 - 1882). [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/picture-of-month/displaypicture.asp?venue=2&id=75. [Accessed 4 April 2013].