J.W. Waterhouse: The Modern Pre-Raphaelite

27 June—13 September 2009

In The Sackler Wing of Galleries, Burlington House

EXHIBITION CLOSED

John William Waterhouse, Circe Offering the Cup to Ulysses, 1891. Oil on canvas, 149 x 92 cm Gallery Oldham

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The Royal Academy of Arts presents a major retrospective exhibition of the Pre-Raphaelite artist, John William Waterhouse RA (1849-1917).

The exhibition, which features over 40 paintings from both public and private collections, includes such highlights as The Lady of Shalott, 1888 (Tate), Hylas and the Nymphs, 1896 (Manchester Art Gallery), Circe Invidiosa: Circe Poisoning the Sea, 1892 (The Art Gallery of South Australia), and from the Royal Academy Collection, A Mermaid, 1900. These works are accompanied by studies in oil, chalk and pencil; period photographs; sketchbooks; and the volumes of Tennyson and Shelley in which Waterhouse drew sketches.

The retrospective considers how Waterhouse's paintings reflect his engagement with contemporary issues ranging from antiquarianism and the classical heritage to occultism and the 'New Woman'. It includes almost all the paintings which made him one of the most successful and critically acclaimed artists of the day.

This is the first major Waterhouse show to be presented in the United Kingdom since the late 1970s.

Organisation

The exhibition has been curated by Peter Trippi, art historian and Waterhouse biographer, together with Elizabeth Prettejohn, Professor of Art History at the University of Bristol, Robert Upstone, Curator of Modern British Art at Tate, Patty Wageman, Director, Groninger Museum and MaryAnne Stevens, Director of Academic Affairs, Royal Academy of Arts. This exhibition is organized by the Groninger Museum, the Netherlands with the collaboration of the Royal Academy of Arts, London and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

• Royal Academy of Arts