A Pre-Raphaelite Marriage: The Lives and Works of Marie Spartali Stillman & W

by David B. Elliot

As occasional model for Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Edward Burne-Jones, Marie Spartali Stillman (1844-1927) remains a well-known face of the Pre-Raphaelite era. William James Stillman (1828-1901) founded and edited The Crayon , the first successful American fine art journal. Stillman painted with members of the Hudson River school and was a pioneering and creative photographer.

Genres: Art

248 pages, Hardcover

First published January 25, 2007

Reviews

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A beautifully put together book including photographs and paintings. It is very detailed when it comes to Stillman's life and marriage. Fascinating reading, although, I was looking for more in-depth detailed information about her life as a painter beyond her obsession with DGR and learning from Ford Madox Brown. It is well-worth it because it is the only biography of her. I was just hoping for something a bit different. I am surprised that the photograph of her studio taken from 1883 was not included in this book at all as well as later photographs of her.

[Steven Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well detailed story of the improbable marriage between Marie Spartali and William J. Stillman. From my reading of this book, William Stillman was self-absorbed, overly rigid, and willing to take moral stands when they would damage him most. He would turn his back on friends, carry out vendettas against some who had once been friends. As a diplomat, he would abandon his duty as an agent of American government and do what he thought best. Stillman dabbled with painting (but never made the commitment needed), photography, diplomacy, and journalism.

The fact that he married a wonderfully talented woman, who was considered quite desirable in her day, is almost a mystery as one reads this book. What did she see in him? Marie's father was opposed to the marriage; Marie's friends were doubtful about the wisdom of her marrying Stillman. Indeed, Stillman sometimes feuded with Marie's friends. Marie Spartali was the daughter of a well off family. She was very talented and did things that women of her time weren't expected to do. She was a fine artist (I am not an expert, but I found her paintings to be pretty impressive). She was a model for some of the finer artists of her era.

This work is a good study of how Marie's and William's lives came together, how their life together unfolded, and the many challenges that they faced (some of which were self-induced by William's actions). The portrayal of Marie and William, his children from an earlier marriage and the progeny from their own marriage is richly told. I do not have enough knowledge of the two main characters of this study or the context in which they worked to judge how accurate or insightful this volume is. But for those who are curious about this odd couple and the context within which their lives unfolded, this looks to me to be a good work.

[Madly Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A RE-READ FOR RESEARCH.

[Cicy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have liked to have know Marie Spartali Stillman. She led such an unconventional life and yet her works appear to show very little evolution over the course of her career.