By their side other men were working, more deeply influenced by the old
masters, and by the minuteness and hard, definite treatment of form
which the Pre-Raphaelite school had inculcated. Foremost of these was
Frederick Sandys. His illustrations, scattered through nearly all the
magazines which have been named, show always a decorative power of
design and are full of fine drawing and fine invention, but remain
resolutely cold in handling and lacking in imaginative ardour. The few
illustrations done by Burne-Jones at this period show a whole-hearted
following of Rossetti, but a somewhat struggling technique; and the same
qualities are to be found in the work of Arthur Hughes, whose
illustrations in _Good Words for the Young_ (1869) have a charm of
tender poetic invention showing through the faults and persistent
uncertainty of his draughtsmanship. The illustrations of Frederick
Shields to Defoe's _History of the Plague_ have a certain affinity to
the work of Sandys; but, with less power over form, they show a more
dramatic sense of light and shade, and at their best can claim real and
original beauty. The formality of feeling and composition, and the
strained, stiff quality of line in Lord Leighton's designs to _Romola_
(1863), do a good deal to mar one's enjoyment of their admirable
draughtsmanship. Many fine drawings done at this period by Leighton,
Poynter, Henry Armstead and Burne-Jones did not appear until the year
1880 in the "Dalziel Bible Gallery," when the methods of which they were
the outcome had fallen almost out of use.
"The 'sixties."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account