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5th out of 27 books
—
4 voters
Lizzie Siddal
In the twenty-first century, even those who do not know Lizzie Siddal's name will recognize her face: she is Millais's doomed Ophelia and Rossetti's beatified Beatrice in two of the nineteenth century's most famous paintings. As Lucinda Hawksley explores in Lizzie Siddal, Face of the Pre-Raphaelites, Siddal's fame was a remarkable phenomenon: in a time when she was the opp
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Published
(first published August 22nd 2006)
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How could I resist a biography of the woman who made red hair fashionable? Nevertheless, 'Lizzie Siddal' is a desperately sad read of mental illness, opium addiction, bitter betrayal and unfulfilled potential. Romantic as the Pre-Raphaelite movement may seem to us now, this book left me profoundly grateful that I live in the era I do now and that I'm free to pursue both a career and creative endeavors, and I don't have to wait nearly ten years for some nut-case, self-obsessed painter to give my...more
I love and I am fascinated by the sheer beauty and detail of Pre-Raphaelite art.
I abhor self-centered, egotistical men, manipulative, conniving women, and the hypocritical Victorian era.
This book combined a tale of some of the things I love and some of those I detest.
From the poorer socioeconomic scale, the former hat shop girl Lizzie Siddal was hauntingly beautiful. Hers was the face used by many of the Pre-Raphaelite artists. Waif like and mesmerizing, Lizzie captured the hearts of many, but l...more
I abhor self-centered, egotistical men, manipulative, conniving women, and the hypocritical Victorian era.
This book combined a tale of some of the things I love and some of those I detest.
From the poorer socioeconomic scale, the former hat shop girl Lizzie Siddal was hauntingly beautiful. Hers was the face used by many of the Pre-Raphaelite artists. Waif like and mesmerizing, Lizzie captured the hearts of many, but l...more
This book has a love-hate thing going on with me for several reasons. The first is that I wrote my dissertation on this topic, and this book came out just a few years after I finished and defended. Obviously, the subject is near and dear to my heart--probably more than I can put into words. Second, there are many assumptions that are made in the book--some of them based on some type of evidence and some not. While I was writing, I was encouraged to make similar assumptions; it was uncomfortable...more
Sep 24, 2012
Rachel
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
art-and-film,
biography-and-memoirs
I have been fascinated with Pre-Raphaelites since I first saw an exhibition of them in the Tate. My favorite PRB member is Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and since she was his lover and muse for so long, of course I had heard of her. Lizzie Siddal was a tragic and depressed woman, partly of her own making and partly because Rossetti was a douchebag who promised to marry her for 8 years and then only did so because she was dying (she got better). His influence, although harmful in the long run, did her...more
On 23rd May 1860, in Hastings, Dante Gabriel Rossetti finally married Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal. The marriage came ten years after they'd first met - after years during which Lizzie waited patiently (and not so patiently) for Rossetti to make a respectable woman of her. A Victorian woman of Lizzie's class had few choices open to her. Making a good marriage was thus something women did whenever the opportunity arose (and indeed as Jane Burden cannily did in marrying William Morris, whom she did no...more
Lizzie Siddal
Miniature of Elizabeth Siddall,attributed to Dante Gabriel Rossetti.
Rossetti sitting to Lizzie Siddal, Sept. 1853
Self-Portrait by Lizzie Siddal
A Very interesting book about the Pre-Rapaelite Supermodel.
Lucinda Hawksley does a superb at collecting all the facts about Lizzie, and the Pre-Raphelite.
There is a great selection of poetry and images.
I did find the book tedious at some parts and had to put the book down an contiune later on.
That said, it is a very well put together biograp...more
Miniature of Elizabeth Siddall,attributed to Dante Gabriel Rossetti.
Rossetti sitting to Lizzie Siddal, Sept. 1853
Self-Portrait by Lizzie Siddal
A Very interesting book about the Pre-Rapaelite Supermodel.
Lucinda Hawksley does a superb at collecting all the facts about Lizzie, and the Pre-Raphelite.
There is a great selection of poetry and images.
I did find the book tedious at some parts and had to put the book down an contiune later on.
That said, it is a very well put together biograp...more
This was an interesting book. I confess I was drawn to it only because of the cover. One of my favourites of Pre-Raphaelite art. Life of Lizzie Siddal was not an easy one. And this book gives as good account of it as any. Her life was full of drama but the book is not passing any judgements which is always refreshing. With topic like Lizzie Siddal it would be only too easy to wallow in scandals and forget the real woman in the middle of it all.
I actually had no idea she was also a poet. I found...more
I actually had no idea she was also a poet. I found...more
I enjoyed this book and thought Lucinda Hawksley did a fine job of gathering information about Lizzie Siddal both from the woman's own art, letters and poetry as well as from accounts from people who knew her. The organization seemed a little sloppy and repetitive to me at times, and occasionally it was difficult to keep track of the many people who are introduced as significant but never really examined afterward. However, it was an interesting and engaging read which read at times like a roman...more
My ex boyfriend - my greatest love - used to think I was a pre-Raphaellite and he used to leave pictures of Lizzie on my bed when he found them in old books or art magazines; because he knew I loved her.
Once, we went to the most enchanted forest and camped there. One day when we were walking, we found a patch under a treee with a bed of all these beautiful wild flowers. My ex asked me to lay on it, in my old floral dress, and my long hair everywhere, and i pretended I was dead amongst the flowe...more
Once, we went to the most enchanted forest and camped there. One day when we were walking, we found a patch under a treee with a bed of all these beautiful wild flowers. My ex asked me to lay on it, in my old floral dress, and my long hair everywhere, and i pretended I was dead amongst the flowe...more
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This well written and apparently well researched biography tells about the life of the Pre-Raphaelite's super model Lizzie Siddal. Her manipulative, addictive, emaciated, and depressed behavior as well as her strong connection to the group of talented artists, poets, and critics was clearly shown. Her talents were wasted by her laudanum addiction and her relationship with Dante Gabriel Rossetti was like a roller coaster ride that more often than not ended in a downward trend.
I knew it would be a sad read, but it turned out to be even more of a slog than I expected. Too many echoes of recent personal events to be able to balance out the historical or artistic interest.
It's had the opposite effect of what I suspect was intended. I now hate the Rosettis. All of them. Their poetry, painting, and drawing (although I maintain that Dante was a better draftsman than painter by a long shot). Their histrionics left me tired and grim, and not missing some of the more intense a...more
It's had the opposite effect of what I suspect was intended. I now hate the Rosettis. All of them. Their poetry, painting, and drawing (although I maintain that Dante was a better draftsman than painter by a long shot). Their histrionics left me tired and grim, and not missing some of the more intense a...more
It offers a fair amount of insight into the life of a fascinating and troubled woman. However, Lizzie Siddal remains elusive, I don't understand her as a person any more than I did before reading this - although I now have a lot more questions to consider about her motivations and feelings.
What I felt this book would have really benefitted from, is the inclusion of more of Lizzie Siddal's artwork - that would have hugely enriched it.
A good and interesting read all the same.
What I felt this book would have really benefitted from, is the inclusion of more of Lizzie Siddal's artwork - that would have hugely enriched it.
A good and interesting read all the same.
A lot of moping + mental illness issues + laudanum. Remember, laudanum addiction was a bad bad thing. I am not really convinced that Lizzie Siddal had any talent for painting/sketching. Interesting read nonetheless. I wish there were more pictures.
Not the best PRB book I've ever read, but definitely adds a different angle. While most authors paint Lizzie strictly as an adjunct to Dante Gabriel Rossetti (Lizzie's teacher, lover and, briefly, husband), this book is firmly in Lizzie's camp. Oddly, though, the author takes pains to underscore Lizzie's laudanum addiction, her blatant manipulations of Dante, and the tenuous nature of her talent. In some ways, you have to wonder why the author wrote it, when she's so antagonistic to her subject.
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This was a thoroughly enjoyable book. Not only does it illuminate a period of history which interests me greatly, but it also encouraged me to re-visit Pre-Raphaelite paintings. The story of Lizzie is indeed a tragic one but it is not told in an over-emotional way. The notion of her as a super model is compelling and I was drawn into the narrative from the outset. Highly recommended.
It all started with the BBC tv series, Desperate Romantics; that's when I fell madly in love with this troubled elusive and amazingly talented woman.
The biography is incisive and interesting. Not hard to read at all... but Lizzi stays a mistery throughout the whole book. Even while trying to unravel her misterious life, we don't get the whole picture of this wonderful woman.
The biography is incisive and interesting. Not hard to read at all... but Lizzi stays a mistery throughout the whole book. Even while trying to unravel her misterious life, we don't get the whole picture of this wonderful woman.
Compelling account of the life of an elusive woman. The world of the Pre-Raphaelites is brought vividly to life. Recommended.
this book has a lot of interesting biographical information, but isn't very well-written from a stylist point of view, unfortunately. I'm on a serious prb kick right now, though, so I'll read whatever I can get.
Interesting - at least you hear Lizzie's voice through her letters but not as good as Franny Moyles Desperate Romantics
Jan 24, 2011
Sarah
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
history-non-fiction,
victorian
Charming, well-researched, clever and entertaining account of a tragic figure.
A well written and insightful glimpse into a very sad life. Beautiful art.
Great topic, not a great book.
Excellent!
May 21, 2013
Sarah Fritz
marked it as to-read
May 14, 2013
Kazoogrrl
marked it as to-read
May 13, 2013
Bridgett
marked it as to-read
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Endicott Mythic F...: * Lizzie Siddal - discussion | 16 | 26 | Sep 29, 2012 07:42am |
Lucinda Hawksley: author, speaker and great-great-great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens.
More about Lucinda Hawksley...
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