Elizabeth Eleanor Siddal (25 July 1829 – 11 February 1862) was an
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity as a people is of early medieval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn....
artists' modelArt modeling involves the posing of a model, an often paid, sometimes even professional, human subject, as an aid in creating a portrait or other work of art including such figure wholly or partially....
,
poetA poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and
artistThe definition of an artist is wide-ranging and covers a broad spectrum of activities to do with creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. the worlds best artist is a man named mitchell peter lay who is often loved by the ladies. The common useage in both everyday speech and...
who was painted and drawn extensively by artists of the
Pre-Raphaelite BrotherhoodThe Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was a group of English painters, poets, and critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais and Dante Gabriel Rossetti...
.
Siddal was perhaps the most important model to sit for the
Pre-Raphaelite BrotherhoodThe Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was a group of English painters, poets, and critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais and Dante Gabriel Rossetti...
. Their ideas about feminine beauty were profoundly influenced by her, or rather she personified those ideals. She was
Dante Gabriel RossettiDante Gabriel Rossetti was an English poet, illustrator, painter and translator. He was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood in 1848 and was later to be the main inspiration for second generation of artists and writers influenced by the movement...
's model par excellence; almost all of his early paintings of women are portraits of her. She was also painted by
Walter DeverellWalter Howell Deverell was an English artist, born in the United States of America, who was associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood....
,
William Holman HuntWilliam Holman Hunt OM was an English painter, and one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.-Life and work:Hunt's intended middle name was "Hobman", which he disliked intensely...
and
John Everett MillaisSir John Everett Millais, 1st Baronet, PRA was an English painter and illustrator and one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.-Early life:...
, and was the model for
Millais'Sir John Everett Millais, 1st Baronet, PRA was an English painter and illustrator and one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.-Early life:...
well known
OpheliaOphelia is a painting by British artist Sir John Everett Millais, completed in 1852. Currently held in the Tate Britain in London, it depicts Ophelia, a character from Shakespeare's play Hamlet, singing before she drowns in a river in Denmark....
(1852).
Early life
Named Elizabeth Eleanor Siddall, after her mother, Lizzie was born on 25 July, 1829, at the family’s home at 7 Charles Street, Hatton Garden. She was born to Charles Crooke Siddall, who claimed that his family descended from nobility, and Eleanor Evans, a family of both
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity as a people is of early medieval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn....
and
WelshThe Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
descent. At the time of Lizzie’s birth, her parents were not poverty stricken: her father had his own cutlery-making business. Around 1831, the Siddall family moved to the borough of Southwark, in south London, a less salubrious area than Hatton Garden. It was in Southwark that the rest of Lizzie’s siblings were born: Lydia, to whom Lizzie was particularly close, Mary, Clara, James and Henry. Although there is no record of her having attended school, Lizzie was able to read and write, presumably having been taught by her parents. She developed a love of poetry at a young age, after discovering a poem by
TennysonAlfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, FRS , much better known as "Alfred, Lord Tennyson," was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom during much of Queen Victoria's reign and remains one of the most popular poets in the English language.Tennyson excelled at penning short lyrics, "In the valley of...
on a scrap of newspaper that had been used to wrap a pat of butter; this discovery was one of Lizzie’s inspirations to start writing her own poetry.
Model for the Pre-Raphaelites
Siddal, whose name was originally spelt 'Siddall' (it was Rossetti who dropped the second 'l') was first noticed by
DeverellWalter Howell Deverell was an English artist, born in the United States of America, who was associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood....
in 1849, while she was working as a milliner in Cranbourne Alley, London. Neither she nor her family had any artistic aspirations or interests. She was employed as a model by Deverell and through him was introduced to the Pre-Raphaelites. The twenty-year-old with her tall thin frame and copper hair was the first of the Pre-Raphaelite "stunners".
William Michael RossettiWilliam Michael Rossetti was an English writer and critic.-Biography:Born in London, he was a son of immigrant Italian scholar Gabriele Rossetti, and the brother of Maria Francesca Rossetti, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Christina Georgina Rossetti.He was one of the seven founder members of the...
, her brother-in-law, described her as "a most beautiful creature with an air between dignity and sweetness with something that exceeded modest self-respect and partook of disdainful reserve; tall, finely-formed with a lofty neck and regular yet somewhat uncommon features, greenish-blue unsparkling eyes, large perfect eyelids, brilliant complexion and a lavish heavy wealth of coppery golden hair."
Lizzie’s introduction to modelling was an extremely pleasant entrance into what could be a sleazy world. At the start of her modeling career, Lizzie was in the enviable position of being allowed to remain working at Mrs. Tozer’s millinery part-time, thereby ensuring herself a regular salary even if modelling did not work out. This was an unusual opportunity for a woman of her time.
While posing for Millais'
Ophelia (1852), Siddal had floated in a bathtub full of water to model the drowning Ophelia. Millais painted daily into the winter with Siddal modeling. He put lamps under the tub to warm the water. On one occasion the lamps went out and the water slowly became icy cold. Millais was absorbed by his painting and did not notice. Siddal did not complain. After this session she became very sick with a severe
coldAcute viral rhinopharyngitis, or acute coryza, known as an upper respiratory virus, or commonly called a cold, is a contagious, viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory system, primarily caused by rhinoviruses, or coronaviruses...
or
pneumoniaPneumonia is an inflammatory illness of the lung. Frequently, it is described as lung parenchyma/alveolar inflammation and abnormal alveolar filling with fluid ....
. Her father held Millais responsible, and forced him to pay compensation for her doctor's bills. It was long thought that she suffered from
tuberculosisTuberculosis is a common and often deadly infectious disease caused by mycobacteria...
, but some historians now believe that an intestinal disorder was more likely. Some have suggested that she might have been an anorexic, while others attribute her poor health to an addiction to
laudanumLaudanum , also known as opium tincture or thebaic tincture is an alcoholic herbal preparation containing approximately 10% opium and 1% morphine . It is made by combining ethanol with opium latex or powder...
or to a combination of ailments.
Elizabeth Siddal was the primary muse for Dante Gabriel Rossetti throughout most of his youth. After he met her he began to paint her to the exclusion of almost all other models and stopped her from modelling for the other Pre-Raphaelites. These drawings and paintings culminated in
Beata BeatrixBeata Beatrix is an oil on canvas painting by Pre-Raphaelite artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti, completed in 1872. It depicts Beatrice Portinari from Dante Alighieri's poem La Vita Nuova at the moment of her death...
, painted in 1863, one year after Elizabeth's death. She was used as a model for this painting, which shows a praying Beatrice (from
Dante AlighieriDurante degli Alighieri , commonly known as Dante, was an Italian poet of the Middle Ages. His central work, the Divina Commedia , is often considered the greatest literary work composed in the Italian language and a masterpiece of world literature.In...
).
Life with Rossetti
Beginning in 1853, with his watercolor, The First Anniversary of the Death of Beatrice, Rossetti painted her in many works. In this piece, Lizzie portrays a regal woman, who visits the distinguished Dante as he writes his autobiography. Too absorbed with his overwhelming passion for Beatrice, Dante initially fails to notice the other people present in the room. Wearing a long, tailored blue gown and a teal headdress, Lizzie clearly occupies a position of considerable rank and beauty. Following this work, Rossetti used Lizzie in other Dante-related pieces, including Dante's Vision of Rachel and Leah (1855) and Beatrice Meeting Dante at a Marriage Feast, Denies him her Salutation (1851). In the latter painting, Lizzie represented Dante's obsession, Beatrice, and again wore a distinguished, long green dress and possessed exquisite beauty. Surrounded by throngs of supporters, she confronts Dante with a defiance that attests to her authority.
After becoming engaged to Rossetti, Siddal began to study with him. In contrast to Rossetti's idealized paintings, Siddal's were harsh. This is very evident in her self portrait, pictured above. Rossetti painted and repainted her and drew countless sketches of her. His depictions show a beauty. Her self portrait shows much about the subject, but certainly not the floating beauty that Rossetti painted. This painting is historically very significant because it shows, through her own eyes, a beauty who was idealized by so many famous artists. In 1855 the art critic
John RuskinJohn Ruskin was an English art critic and social thinker, also remembered as an author, poet and artist. His essays on art and architecture were extremely influential in the Victorian and Edwardian eras....
began to subsidize her career. Ruskin paid £150 per year in exchange for all drawings and paintings that she produced. Siddal produced many sketches but only a single painting. Her sketches are laid out in a fashion similar to Pre-Rapaelite compositions and tend to illustrate Arthurian legend and other idealized Medieval themes. Ruskin also admonished Rossetti in his letters for not marrying Siddal and giving her the security she needed. During this period Siddal also began to write poetry, often with dark themes about lost love or the impossibility of true love. "Her verses were as simple and moving as ancient ballads; her drawings were as genuine in their medieval spirit as much more highly finished and competent works of Pre-Raphaelite art," wrote critic William Gaunt in
The Pre-Raphaelite Dream.
Rossetti again represented Lizzie as Dante's Beatrice in one of his most famous works, Beata Beatrix, (1864-1870) which he painted as a memorial to Lizzie after her death. This piece also mimicked the death of Dante's love in his autobiographical work, Vita Nuova. In the work, amidst a yellow haze of relatively indistinct shapes, including Florence's Ponte Vecchio and the figures of Dante and Love, Lizzie sits, representing Dante's Beatrice. With an upturned chin and closed eyes, Lizzie appears keenly aware of her impending fate, death. A bird, which serves as the messenger of death, places a poppy in her hands. Critics have praised the piece for its emotional resonance, which can be felt simply through the work's moving coloring and composition. The true history of Rossetti and his beloved wife further deepens its meaning; although their love had waned at that point, Lizzie still exerted a powerful influence on the artist.
Perhaps the artist's most abundant and personal works, however, included his pencil sketches of his wife at home. He began these sketches in 1852, when he moved into a home, Chatham Place, with Lizzie, and the two became increasingly anti-social, absorbing each other's affections. The lovers even coined affectionate nicknames for one another, which included "Guggums" or "Gug" and "Dove" - one of Rossetti's names for Lizzie. Rossetti taught Lizzie to paint and write. Although Lizzie produced mediocre work, due to his complete adoration of her, Rossetti labeled her a creative genius. Rossetti manifested this same idealization of Lizzie in his sketches (most of which he entitled simply, "Elizabeth Siddal"), in which he portrayed her as a woman of leisure, class, and beauty, often situated in comfortable settings.
In both his art and writings, Rossetti exalted Lizzie. In fact, his period of great poetic production began when he met her and ended around the time of her death. (Douchy, 155) His poem, "A Last Confession," in particular, exemplifies his love for Lizzie, whom he personifies as the heroine with eyes, "as of the sea and sky on a grey day." In this piece, a man's affections for a young girl progress from parental to romantic as the girl ages. In addition, Lizzie has traditionally been viewed as the idealized, golden-haired woman who observes her beloved from heaven in his acclaimed poem, "The Blessed Damozel":
- The blessed damozel leaned out
- From the gold bar of Heaven;
- Her eyes were deeper than the depth
- Of waters stilled at even;
- She had three lilies in her hand,
- And the stars in her hair were seven.
- Her robe, ungirt from clasp to hem,
- No wrought flowers did adorn,
- But a white rose of Mary's gift,
- For service meetly worn;
- Her hair that lay along her back
- Was yellow like ripe corn.
- Herseemed she scarce had been a day
- One of God's choristers;
-
-
-
- -- From The Blessed Damozel
This idealized vision of the golden-haired beauty looking down from Heaven truly displays the high regard with which Rossetti viewed Lizzie.
Lizzie's prominence in Rossetti's works decreased as their love faded and she became increasingly ill. As Beata Beatrix shows, however, Rossetti never forgot his love for Lizzie, even after her death. Another famous work that he produced toward the end of their marriage was his, Regina Cordium or The Queen of Hearts (1860). Painted as a marriage portrait, this picture features a close-up, vibrantly colored depiction of Lizzie. Her shiny, golden hair complements the light orange hue of her heart necklace, and, with an upturned chin, she embodies the regal heir implied by the title. Such flattering portraits truly reflected Rossetti's undying affection for his wife.
Relationship with Rossetti's Family
As Siddal came from a working-class family, Rossetti feared introducing her to his parents. "Lizzy" was also the victim of harsh criticism from Rossetti's sisters. The knowledge that the family would not approve the wedding contributed to Rossetti putting it off. Siddal also appears to have believed, with some justification, that Rossetti was always seeking to replace her with a younger muse, which contributed to her later depressive periods and illness.
Rossetti's relationship with Siddal is also explored by Christina Rossetti in her poem "In an Artist's Studio":
- One face looks out from all his canvases,
- One selfsame figure sits or walks or leans:
- We found her hidden just behind those screens,
- That mirror gave back all her loveliness.
- A queen in opal or in ruby dress,
- A nameless girl in freshest summer-greens,
- A saint, an angel -- every canvas means
- The same one meaning, neither more nor less.
- He feeds upon her face by day and night,
- And she with true kind eyes looks back on him,
- Fair as the moon and joyful as the light:
- Not wan with waiting, not with sorrow dim;
- Not as she is, but was when hope shone bright;
- Not as she is, but as she fills his dream.
Marriage, ill-health and death
Siddal travelled to
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and
NiceNice is a city in southern France located on the Mediterranean coast, between Marseille, France, and Genoa, Italy, with 347 060 inhabitants in the 2006 estimate...
for several years for her health. She returned to England in 1860 to marry Rossetti. The Wedding took place on Wednesday, May 23, 1860, at St. Clement's Church in the seaside town of Hastings. They had no family or friends present, just a couple of witnesses whom they had asked in Hastings. At the time of their wedding, she was so frail from illness that she had to be carried to the church, despite it being a 5 minute walk from where she was staying. Rossetti donated a painting to the church as a thank you, and it remains in the church to this day.
After the wedding, as soon as Lizzie was well enough, the Rossettis left for their honeymoon in France.
In the previous ten years he had been engaged to her and then broken it off at the last minute several times. Stress from those incidents had affected her. She was now
severely depressedIn psychology and psychiatry, depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity. While most often described as a disease or dysfunction, there are also strong arguments for seeing depression as an adaptive defense mechanism....
and her long illness had given her access to and addiction to laudanum. In 1861, Siddal became pregnant. She was overjoyed about this, but the pregnancy ended in a stillborn daughter. Siddal overdosed on
laudanumLaudanum , also known as opium tincture or thebaic tincture is an alcoholic herbal preparation containing approximately 10% opium and 1% morphine . It is made by combining ethanol with opium latex or powder...
shortly after becoming pregnant for a second time. Rossetti discovered her unconscious and dying in bed. Although her death was ruled accidental by the coroner, there are suggestions that Rossetti found a suicide note. Consumed with grief and guilt Rossetti went to see
Ford Madox BrownFord Madox Brown was an English painter of moral and historical subjects, notable for his distinctively graphic and often Hogarthian version of the Pre-Raphaelite style.-Life and Work:...
who is supposed to have instructed him to burn the note – under the law at the time suicide was both illegal and immoral and would have brought a scandal on the family as well as barred Siddal from a Christian burial.
Overcome with grief, Rossetti enclosed in Elizabeth's
coffinA coffin is a funerary box used in the display and containment of deceased remains – either for burial or cremation.-Practices:Any box used to bury the dead in is a coffin...
a small journal containing the only copies he had of his many poems. He purportedly slid the book into Elizabeth's red hair. She was then interred at
Highgate CemeteryHighgate Cemetery is a cemetery located in Highgate, London, England. It is designated Grade II* on the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England.-History and setting:...
in London. In 1869, Rossetti was chronically addicted to drugs and alcohol. He convinced himself that he was going blind and couldn't paint. He began to write poetry again. Before publishing his newer poems he became obsessed with retrieving the poems he had slipped into Elizabeth's hair. Rossetti and his agent, the notorious
Charles Augustus HowellCharles Augustus Howell was an art dealer and alleged blackmailer who is best-known for persuading the poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti to dig up the poems he buried with his wife Elizabeth Siddal...
, applied to the Home Secretary for an order to have her coffin exhumed to retrieve the manuscript. This was done in the dead of night so as to avoid public curiosity and attention, and Rossetti was not present. Howell reported to Rossetti that her corpse was remarkably well preserved and her delicate beauty intact. Her hair was said to have continued to grow after death so that the coffin was filled with her coppery hair. The manuscript was retrieved although a worm had burrowed through the book so that some of the poems were difficult to read. Rossetti published the old poems with his newer ones; they were not well received by some critics because of their eroticism, and he was haunted by the exhumation through the rest of his life.
Seven years after Lizzie's death, Rossetti published a collection of sonnets entitled
The House of Life; contained within it was the poem, "Without Her". It is a reflection on life once love has departed:
- What of her glass without her? The blank grey
- There where the pool is blind of the moon's face.
- Her dress without her? The tossed empty space
- Of cloud-rack whence the moon has passed away.
- Her paths without her? Day's appointed sway
- Usurped by desolate night. Her pillowed place
- Without her? Tears, ah me! For love's good grace,
- And cold forgetfulness of night or day.
- What of the heart without her? Nay, poor heart,
- Of thee what word remains ere speech be still?
- A wayfarer by barren ways and chill,
- Steep ways and weary, without her thou art,
- Where the long cloud, the long wood's counterpart,
- Sheds doubled up darkness up the labouring hill.
-
-
-
- -- From Without Her
In fiction and drama
Fiona Mountain's 2002 mystery novel
Pale as the Dead centers a "genealogical mystery" around the descendants of Elizabeth Siddal and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. In the novel, the couple's sickly newborn daughter is not stillborn but is stolen by their family doctor, who was in love with Elizabeth. Elizabeth's mysterious ailments are explained as a genetic heart defect that has been inherited by her great-great granddaughter Bethany, a young woman who is modeling for photographs inspired by the Pre-Raphaelite paintings.
Mollie HardwickMollie Greenhalgh Hardwick was an English author who was best known for writing books that accompanied the TV series Upstairs, Downstairs....
(author of
Upstairs, DownstairsUpstairs, Downstairs is a BAFTA and Emmy award-winning British drama television series set in a large townhouse in Edwardian London that depicted the lives of the servants "downstairs" and their masters "upstairs"...
) wrote a mystery novel entitled
The Dreaming Damozel in 1990. The plot follows antique dealer Doran Fairweather, who is elated to find a small oil painting she believes to be of Elizabeth Siddal. But she is shocked when she happens upon the body of a young girl, floating dead in a pond. The death scene mimics the Millais painting of Ophelia featuring Elizabeth Siddal. Doran is so excited by the coincidence and mystery that she ignores the advice of her husband, Rodney, who warns her that the story of Rossetti and Siddal was plagued by unhappiness. He feels that any involvement in this mystery will lead to trouble and danger. But Doran is quickly becoming obsessed with the Rossetti/Siddal saga and is making some interesting new friends. She fails to see the trap that is ready to snare her.
Rossetti's relationship with Siddal has been the subject of a number of television dramas, notably
Dante's InfernoDante's Inferno: The Private Life of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Poet and Painter is a feature-length television film directed by Ken Russell about the relationship between Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Elizabeth Siddal. It was one of a series of films made by Russell for the BBC during the 1960s about...
(1967), by
Ken RussellHenry Kenneth Alfred Russell, known as Ken Russell , is an English film director. He is known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his controversial style. He has been criticized as being overly obsessed with sexuality and the church. His subject matter is often about famous...
, in which she was played by Judith Paris and Rossetti by
Oliver ReedRobert Oliver Reed was an English actor known for his burly screen presence. Reed exemplified his real-life macho image in "tough-guy" roles...
;
The Love SchoolThe Love School was a 1975 BBC television drama series about the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, written by John Hale, Ray Lawler, Robin Chapman and John Prebble. It was directed by Piers Haggard, John Glenister and Robert Knights. It was shown during January and February 1975. The series was shown in...
(1975) in which she was played by
Patricia QuinnPatricia Quinn, Lady Stephens is an actress best known for her role as Magenta in the perennial cult-hit film The Rocky Horror Picture Show . Hers were the red lips that appeared in the film's opening song Science Fiction/Double Feature...
; and
Desperate RomanticsDesperate Romantics is a six-part television drama serial about the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, first broadcast on BBC Two between July 21 and August 25, 2009.-Overview:...
(2009) in which she was played by
Amy MansonAmy Manson is a Scottish actress, known for portraying Alice Guppy in Torchwood, Abby Evans in Casualty and Lizzie Siddal in Desperate Romantics.-Background:...
.
Further reading
- Surtees, Virginia (1991). Rossetti's Portraits of Elizabeth Siddal, Aldershot: Scolar Press. ISBN 0-85967-885-7.
- Morrissey, Kim
Kim Morrissey is a Canadian poet and playwright who lives in London, England. Many of her works examine the role of women in nineteenth century culture, re-imagining the lives of historical figures. She is also part of the Comedy Collective UK...
(1998). Clever as Paint: The Rossettis in Love (playscript), Toronto: Playwrights Canada Press. ISBN 0-88754-552-1.
- Hawksley, Lucinda
Lucinda Anne Dickens Hawksley is a British biographer, author and lecturer.The daughter of Henry Dickens Hawksley and Susan Jane , and the great great great granddaughter of Victorian novelist Charles Dickens and his wife Catherine, Hawksley is an award-winning travel writer...
(2004). Lizzie Siddal: The Tragedy of a Pre-Raphaelite Supermodel, Andre Deutsch ISBN 0-233-00117-4
External links