Friday Featured Art: The Light of the World

William Holman Hunt was one of the Pre-Raphaelite painters of the 1800s. He did a piece called The Light of the World, which hangs in the chapel at Keble College Oxford. It is rather dark and medieval looking, but I like the idea. Christ is standing at the door, knocking. The tall weeds show that the door to the soul has long been unopened. I think that the dawn and the stars in the background are very pretty. Holman Hunt painted this picture outside in natural light. We saw his third version of the painting in the Middlesex Chapel at St. Paul's Cathedral (the picture at the bottom is from their site).

Friday Featured Art: The Lady of Shalott

Tennyson's poem, The Lady of Shalott inspired numerous works of art and references that continue to this day. These first three examples are works by John William Waterhouse - a later Pre-Raphaelite artist. The one with the boat is the classic one that you are probably all familiar with. The last image that I've included is a version by William Holman Hunt - another member of the Pre-Raphaelite brotherhood. I love the pose and the hair and the detail. Which do you like best?