It was a cold, dark day in the city. Sheets of rain fell from the black sky and the wind howled a mournful tune as it whipped cyclones of leaves through the air and nearly pulled trees from the ground. I had the afternoon off, and while a large part of me just wanted to go home and crawl into my cozy, warm bed to escape the weather, I also wanted to find some beauty amidst all the grayness of the day. I soon found that my waterlogged feet had taken me to the entrance of the Met, and I quickly made my way to an exhibit that I had been wanting to see for a while:
The Pre-Raphaelite Legacy: British Art and Design. As soon as I ducked inside, I felt like the sun had come back out.
I've been in love with the work of the Pre-Raphaelites for as long as I can remember. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was a group of artists who came together in London in the second half of the 1800s to start a movement to reclaim beauty in art. They wanted to rebel against the prevailing academic notions of the day, and return to the artistic traditions of the Middle Ages and early Renaissance art before Raphael. They sought to create art that was uplifting in its beauty, and they focused on poetic and romantic themes, often portraying scenes from medieval romance or classical myth.
The artists often used the women in their lives as models for their work and they all seemed to capture their almost otherworldly beauty, as well as a mournful quality in their eyes.
Looking around the room, it was hard to choose a favorite piece, but I did find myself drawn to Dante Gabriel Rosseti's
Rosa Triplex.
...but then again, there was also the wonderfully saturated colors, beautiful modeling, and classical grandeur of Frederic, Lord Leighton's
Lachrymae....
and of course, there was also the idyllic romanticism of Edward Burne-Jones'
The Love Song.
It was around this time that I gave up on the whole choosing-a-favorite-thing.
But then I stumbled upon the books.
With their ornate illustrations of medieval romances and poems, they piqued my imagination the most.
I wanted to reach through the glass and turn the page, and read more about these knights and maidens in the wild wood.
All too soon, I came to the end of the exhibit, so I made my way back toward the center of the museum, stopping briefly to ogle some French stoneware...
before letting myself get lost in the Middle Ages.
At this point, I needed a pick-me-up, so I wandered over to the American Wing Cafe and grabbed a cup of Earl Grey. As I sipped my tea, I tried to strike up a conversation with two rather cheeky gents that I spotted nearby.
I cracked a few jokes but they stayed rather stone-faced.
This fellow, however, hung on my every word.
The glint of metal caught my eye from across the wing, though, and I moved on to have a look at the Arms & Armor. I arrived just in time to see a parade of knights on horseback.
We struck up a rather civilized conversation about the pros and cons of wearing armor (cleaning red wine spills off your lap is apparently a breeze!) but it was soon time to go, so I headed back out into the rain, fortified by thoughts of knights and ladies and love.
Unfortunately, the Pre-Raphaelite exhibit has ended at the Met, but there's always something wonderful to see there. Check out their current exhibitions
here, and if you're on a budget, keep in mind that the admission prices are only a suggested donation, so you can pay whatever you can. If you go, swing by the American Wing and let me know if the two naked guys are in a more talkative mood.
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