The weather is so soft with its gentle warmth that one wonders if we are in for a drought? The gardens remind me of a piece of music, for reverence of flowers is not a modern phenomenon. The Victorian Garden was a television programme many years ago, I fell in love with the music and every time I hear it on the radio it brings back memories.... Here in this video Helen Allingham's paintings are shown.
"You have the radiance and innocence of reinstated infant divinity showered again among the flowers of English meadows by Mrs.Allingham and Kate Greenaway". John Ruskin
Paintings of pretty gardens. Her cottage paintings perhaps reflect more of a truth, the poverty of ramshackle thatched cottages, a bucolic England, now part of our culture in holiday cottages decor as they try to seduce you into spending your money on their second homes for a holiday in a cottage with 'roses round the door'. Never read the history of Britain without realising the rich got rich on the hard labour of the poor.
Some time later: Well I remembered an article in John Ruskin's The Art of England, a rather worn copy of the 1893 edition I own. It was about Kate Greenaway and Mrs.Allingham, though I could not find much about the latter.
But Ruskin and I are on the same page as to social conditions, he was talking about how children in Victorian Britain were often drawn being eaten by crocodiles and lions, this of course due to a religious bias that said you must frighten your children into obedience.
"But in England it was long repressed by the terrible action of our wealth, compelling our painters to represent the children of the poor as in wickedness or misery".
I like John Ruskin, he writes voluminously ;), the subjects racing off his pen, and like William Morris was a social commentator of his time
Wandering around as usual; But finding this book, an original, and I questioned its value on the net, well it will not reach the £85 asked by one bookseller mine is a rather dirty copy. But the cover is vellum, animal skin, and so should be able to clean up gently. I remember an old friend who also collected old books, talking about the use of cigarette paper to mend a torn page. Remember when those who could not afford expensive made up cigarettes, pulling out their little boxes of Rizla papers?
thank you so much - I've been transported just when I needed to be. absolutely beautiful.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed the music Regina.
ReplyDeleteI reached out to my shelf to have another look at "The Victorian World of Helen Allingham"after reading this. I've had it for ages and never really got round to looking all the way through.
ReplyDeleteWhen I worked in libraries in the early 70's pages would be mended with that izal? loo roll - very similar to Rizla papers.
Well a novel use of loo roll. It was particularly horrible Izal if I remember right. When I look at her flower gardens I am amazed at how many flowers are growing, so I wonder if there wasn't a bit of extra added?
ReplyDelete