Women continued to dominate Rossetti’s art. In the 1860s he began to produce large compositions consisting of single female figures exploring female beauty and sensuality. Rossetti used coloured chalks for these subjects. Alexa Wilding posed for this drawing of Gretchen from Goethe’s ‘Faust’. She is shown discovering a casket of jewels.
Risen at Dawn; Gretchen Discovering Faust’s Jewels 1868 by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828–1882). Coloured chalks.
In 1860 Rossetti’s art changed radically. He began to concentrate on large single female figures which deal with female beauty and sensuality. In the late 1860s he started to use coloured chalks and pastels for these female subjects. This large pastel drawing of Gretchen was inspired by Goethe’s Faust, one of Rossetti’s favourite books. Faust seduced Gretchen, she tried to rebel but it resulted in her death. This picture illustrates the turning point in the story when Gretchen discovers a casket of jewels placed in her room. Alexa Wilding posed for Gretchen. Initially Rossetti drew her nude but Lord Armstrong, who commissioned the drawing, asked Rossetti to clothe her.
There are these inscriptions on the exhibit:
This exhibit is currently on display. Ref CALMG : 1949.125.36
Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery collection, bequest of Emily and Gordon Bottomley 1949
Image © Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery
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