Pre Raphaelite Sisters: Effie Gray Artwork

Museum of Femininity

Welcome to the Museum of Femininity, a laid back podcast exploring different aspects of female history and the representation of women in art and material culture My name is Charlotte Appleyard, a graduate with an MA in Art History and Archaeology of East Asia and museum professional. I have a love of Symbolism, Edo period art, fashion history and all things Victorian. Join me as I learn about areas of art and social history which have either faded from memory or were never taught to me in the first place! This is a fun passion project for me to keep me connected to my various interests, I hope you enjoy my rambles :)

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Museum of Femininity

Pre Raphaelite Sisters: Effie Gray

November 27, 2021 • Charlotte Appleyard

For our 50th episode we will be revisiting the Pre-Raphaelite Sisters by exploring the fascinating life of Effie Gray (1828-1897) a famed beauty, with a charming and vivacious personality, she is an interesting character as her life can tell us so much about Victorian society and the way women were perceived.
Here we will be focusing on Effie Gray's unhappy and loveless marriage to the Art critic and Pre-Raphaelite champion John Ruskin and their scandelous annulment, which allowed her to marry the dashing Pre-Raphaelite painter and founder John Everett Millais, who she had fallen in love with. This is a story about the role of a wife, repressed sexuality, a woman's right to love, pleasure and freedom and the power and control of a rigid social structure where every class and gender has to adhere to certain rules and expectations.

Sources
Effie: the Passionate lives of Effie Gray, John Ruskin and John Everett Millais by Suzanne Fagence Cooper
Pre-Raphaelite Sisters by Jan Marsh
https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw04406/Effie-Gray-Lady-Millais

Images
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