COVE

The image that I have selected is a Pre-Raphaelite illustration for the poem The Lady of Shallot by Alfred Tennyson, published in the Moxon Tennyson. The image is illustrated by artist William Holman Hunt and engraved by the Dalziels in 1857. It measures 4.2 x 3.6 inches on the page, and showcases the Lady featured in the poem, entangled in a web of her own weaving with multiple Pre-Raphaelite images showcased in the mirrors pictured behind her. The image is a wood-carved engraving previously drawn by a Pre-Raphaelite artist. This image speaks to the second wave of popularity that Pre-Raphaelite art experienced during the time of publication for the Moxon Tennyson, and specifically the exhibit the Pre-Raphaelite artists held in Russell Square in May 1857. The exhibit itself featured many Pre-Raphaelite illustrations that were featured in the published edition of the Moxon Tennyson alongside the written poems, many of which were the original images before being (potentially) censored by the person completing the wood engravings for them. The original images, full of Pre-Raphaelite symbolism and themes, present one depiction of bringing a book to art, and this style of art in itself influenced book illustrations going forward into the twentieth century.

This image in specific, although potentially altered by the wood engraver, contains many of the common Pre-Raphaelite and Arthurian symbolism featured in the collected works for the exhibit, and also the murals that Pre-Raphaelite artists completed for the Oxford Union Debating Halls. Appearing behind the Lady in this image is the figure of Sir Lancelot, an Arthurian character also directly featured in the text of the poem, and another poem to the right of this mirror depicting the crucifixion of Jesus. The artists use these two pictures to make commentary on the ideas of female sexuality and desire, and how according to society at this time it is forbidden. Similarly, they place Religious images at the forefront, which would have been a common theme among illustration. This image is a reflection of what would’ve been shown at the Russell Square exhibit and speaks to why Victorian Britain would’ve been shocked to see it.