Introduction
There is an activity and story which unravels as we place our eyes on this painting, which is typical of this artist's work. Mythology and symbolism were a big element of his content, though the way in which he delivered it with style and elegance helped to set his career out as unique.
Waterhouse sits on the outskirts of the Pre-Raphaelites, never strictly a member of the Brotherhood. This enabled him to impart a slightly different approach, whilst still taking the best that this movement had to offer. He could learn from the likes of Millais, Burne-Jones and the like but without just reproducing their styles.
Description
This charming piece is placed at 1900 by some sources and 1905 by others. What we do know is that it was displayed at the Royal Academy and that the artist himself had a long running relationship with this powerful art institution. This piece connects with his Hylas and the Nymphs, which itself is amongst his most famous paintings.
This dramatic scene captures two young women sitting on the edge of a pond or small stream. The head of Orpheas floats lifelessly below them, and suddenly they spot this gruesome sight. Despite coming to such a brutal end, Orpheas is still stunningly beautiful, with the same facial look as the two nymphs above - this was the preferred look used by Waterhouse for most of his female portraits.
One of the nymphs holds a copper jug in her right hand, presumably having arrived at the stream with the intention of washing her clothes or taking some drinking water home. She is dressed in a grey or purple robe with a pink undergarment. Her friend is in blue, with a red cloth around her waist.
Behind them the artist chooses to darken the scene, to avoid distracting the viewer from the main focal point of the piece. A number of slim trees reach up to the top of the painting, and a bright horizon is viewable between the trees and bushes. The overall setting is entirely typical of the artist.
Studies
John William Waterhouse was trained in the traditional, academic method found in Victorian Britain. Drawing was considered a fundamental skill, and was also taught first. The artist would plan many of his paintings in pencil or chalk first, with particular attention given to his portraits.
For this painting he is likely to have sketched out the facial expressions and angles of each figure within this composition, prior to starting the main painting. This would avoid spending time making major adjustments at a later date and he continued to use this working process throughout his career.
Related Paintings
When looking beyond the closely related members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, who else do these paintings remind us of? Perhaps the cherubs frequently used by William-Adolphe Bouguereau or maybe the swirling, intertwined figures of Gustav Klimt's The Kiss.
Large Image of Nymphs Finding the Head of Orpheus
Find a larger image of the original painting below. This helps us to appreciate more of the stunning detail added by the classically trained artist back in the early 20th century. Sadly, his style was starting to fall out of fashion by this point, but in recent years there has been a renewed interest in artists such as Waterhouse, as well as Leighton, Millais and Alma-Tadema.
Nymphs Finding the Head of Orpheus
