This Painting Almost Killed Her

This piece is called Ophelia by John Everett Millais. It depicts a scene in the Shakespeare Play Hamlet where a grief stricken Ophelia accidentally falls into a stream and drowns. It’s a tragic story. But perhaps equally as haunting is the story of the model for this painting, Elizabeth Siddal who nearly died posing for it.

After months of painting the flora and fauna, Millais brought the canvas into his studio to paint the subject, Ophelia. Though by this time, much of the year had slipped away and it was wintertime in London. He had Siddal wear an antique dress and lie in a bathtub filled with water. During their sessions, Millais would place oil lamps beneath the tub to keep the water warm. But during one of the sessions, the lamps burned out and Millias was too engrossed in his painting to notice. The water turned frigid but Siddal worked through the discomfort in silence. Afterwards, Elizabeth got extremely sick with pneumonia. It was so severe that her parents threatened to take legal action against the artist and forced him to pay for her doctors bills along with her laudanum prescription.

John Everrett Millias was one of the founders of the pre-Raphaelite brotherhood. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was made up of artists who were unhappy with the teaching they had received at the art academy. They challenged the many rules they were taught.
They wanted to go back to a time before there were so many rules surrounding art. Back to a time when you could just paint things as they were.

Elizabeth Siddal died of an opiate overdose at the age of 32. She overdosed on a drug called laudanum, the same drug she had to take when she got sick from posing for the Ophelia painting. But this is by no means where the many tragedies of her life start, nor where they end. Because maybe the biggest tragedy is that even today, we know her not for her art, or for her poetry, or even for the suffering she endured to bring us this beautiful painting. But instead, we know her as a pretty face, partially submerged in the tub of water that killed her.

[AuntieSkeleton]

She was a Victorian era supermodel, artist, and poet who died young, the movie of her life would be amazing!

[OldLadyReacts]

Whether or not Ophelia "accidentally" fell into the water is based on how you interpret the text. It is told later by Gertrude that the branch broke and dragged her under with her heavy dress sodden with water, but Gertrude may have lied because if Ophelia decided to unalive herself, she wouldn't be allowed a Christain burial and it would be rather embarassing to have her son's fiance commit suicide. There's a big argument about it in Slings & Arrows.

[mistingwolf]

If only I'd known about Elizabeth in high school when we were tasked to research artists. RIP Elizabeth Siddal.

[kriselise]

i wrote an essay about this painting a few months ago. there is so much detail and i loved writing about it.

[daveseddon]

Love your sense of humour - definitely required when dealing with heart-breaking tales like this.😊

[mayaalieva]

I know the YouTuber obsoleteoddity did a video on her, she suffered that's for sure, she lost a child, that seemed to drive her deeper into depression. And I remember her poem, "Lord May I Come to Thee?", was so beautiful. I agree her "partner" held her back. It's incredibly tragic that her own art and poems weren't recognized and neither was her genius. I'm glad you covered this painting and the model here.

[Jmmmmama]

I love the idea that you’re changing her fate. That if people knew about her art, they’d care more about it than her being a model. You’re doing gods work

[jr]

She looks like a photo rather than a painting, especially her face. I think it’s beautiful

[catzenhouse]

Decades ago my Senior Honors English teacher (from Australia and New Zealand) introduced us to this painting with a postcard of this image. (We were in the midst of year long theme study of death in literature and plays.) I fell in love with it and was determined to be able to see the painting in person. It took me 37 years but was worth the wait. Absolutely mesmerizing! It was strange, however, to see the actual size (life size) of the painting after seeing that tiny postcard image initially. A few years ago I read a biography of Elizabeth Siddal's life - what a tragic life it was.

[Serai]

She _can't_ "pull herself out of the water.". Drowning was not u common for women back then because of their _clothes._ Multiple skirts, often of heavy material, and laced bodices meant that if you fell in water deeper than your waist, you could easily drown. She didn't give herself up; that was just Gertrude trying to make herself feel better.

[ramblinrose]

The water doesn't look dirty at all...the ground underneath it is dark...but if you actually look you can see the transparency of the water.

[Mahoney]

It makes me so happy when I wake up on a Saturday morning and there is a new Art Deco video! I really appreciate the time you spend researching each painting and the work you put into each video. The cutaways and sound effects are brilliant! Love your channel, thank you!

[jackg.]

Dang. So much included in this video that I had never heard before, and I've long been drawn to this painting. Thank you SO MUCH for explaining this lady's life and her history.

[PaolaEnergya]

Brilliant analysis - thank you for putting so much work into researching the history of paintings. I saw the original Ophelia painting in the Tate Museum, London, and being so close to it gave me goosebumps. You could almost hear the water flowing and feel a gentle breeze. It is an extraordinary painting.

[maryjanerx]

Wow flowers have so many symbolic meanings

[Dismythed]

Roses bloom perenially during any period free of freezing weather. They're so popular because they're hardy and easy to take care of. They love you for the least bit of care and flourish lavishly for quality care.

[justineharper]

This is one of my favorite paintings. I didn’t realize how sad the model’s story was

[emibbie]

You're the best Art teacher i have ever had! 😂 I am always impatiently waiting on the next class! 😅
PLEASE teach us about Fairy Fellows Master Stroke!!!

[CharlezEggs]

Thank you so much! Once again you shine a light through the ages to show us a beautiful & talented soul.

[nilawarriorprincess]

Interesting! That makes Anne of Green Gables & her constantly lamenting about her red hair finally make sense! I mean, being an orphan seem far worse than red hair, so I never got it. I'm currently re-reading AGG so I looked up this painting up after reading the scene when Anne says she can't be this character because her *Anne* hair is red. I think this was painted around the time the book is set, so Anne couldn't have ever imagined that red hair is beautiful. I so love it when everything comes together. This is one of my favorite paintings. I'm thrilled to connect it to my favorite book series.