Artist 9/20: Herbert James Draper New Pictures New Pictures

Coming fresh off my Kitsch rant, I'd like to introduce to you an horrendously neglected artist. Considered one of the last true romantic artists from the victorian era, there has been no modern study of his work and you're lucky if you can find more than a paragraph on his bio. Despite being considered one of the true masters of his genre, he was never made never elected Royal Academician, or even Associate of the prostegious arts schools he attended in London, Paris and Rome. The man's work epidomised my childhood definition of beauty. I'm referring to forgotten artist Herbert James Draper.

I can only imagine that Herbert LOVED women. He painted them all the time. He was sort of the opposite to Michelangelo in regards to the human form. While Michelangelo drooled over the beauty that was the male body, Herbert prefered the curves of a woman. Not to say that ol Herb couldn't paint men. Oh no he did several romance paintings that more than displayed his understanding the human form of not just both genders but of multiple ethnicities. Most of his works use a female subject to depict a goddess, a myth, legend, or even to embody an element of nature. and when it comes to personal taste, Herby hails from a period where the ideals of femanine beauty most appeal to me.

And the POETRY! Oh the poetry! Take this painting entitled Day and the Dawnstar: It is the romantic embodiment of the sun and the morning star and how they can never co-exist. He reaches out to kiss the lips of Dawnstar, who at that moment, overwhelmed by his radiance, expires. Draper would even write poetry or "couplets" with some of his work: 'To faint in the light of the sun she loves/To faint in his light and to die'. I normally hate poetry but this is good stuff!

The man understood light, form, atmosphere, composition and his style ranged from sfumato to detailed realism. His characters weren't always confined to poses that were stoic, alluring or dignified. Quite the contrary, many of his works were of characters experiencing horror, rapture, glee in very natural and relatible expressions.

What also has me enamored over the man is that even his model studies and sketch work would easily be seen as high end work today, though he saw them as subpar. I find them exquisite and can only hope that even I will one day be as good. His diversity in subject matter is probably what made Herbert successful in his golden days but for some odd reason he quickly fell out of popularity towards the end of his life. Little is known why. If my career goes as planned, Herbert James Draper is among the first on my list of artists whose work I hope to conserve and research.