All is not Gold that Glitters: The Gilded Apple (1899)
In 1901, the neo-pre-Raphaelite artist Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale became an overnight success with a show of watercolours at the London dealers Dowdeswell’s. The works were characterised by critics as decorative moralities relying on allegory and literary reference. Focussing on one of these works,...
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| Publicado no: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/polysemes, |
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| Autor principal: | |
| Formato: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Idioma: | Anglais |
| Publicado em: |
Polysèmes
2016
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| Assuntos: | |
| Acesso em linha: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:polysemes_928 |
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| record_format |
openedition |
| collection |
OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
mythe or dorure artistes femmes valeur nouvelle femme myth gold gilding women artists value new woman |
| spellingShingle |
mythe or dorure artistes femmes valeur nouvelle femme myth gold gilding women artists value new woman Gerrish Nunn, Pamela All is not Gold that Glitters: The Gilded Apple (1899) |
| description |
In 1901, the neo-pre-Raphaelite artist Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale became an overnight success with a show of watercolours at the London dealers Dowdeswell’s. The works were characterised by critics as decorative moralities relying on allegory and literary reference. Focussing on one of these works, The Gilded Apple, allows an examination of this millennial moment of currency for the moral parable in which the traditional benchmark of wealth, good and benefit—gold—was a central referent.This intensely worked drawing was not explained by the artist, whom some critics reproached for the opacity of her stories. Notwithstanding, this choice of theme can be connected to her preoccupation with the competing appeal of worldly wealth and moral or spiritual richness, seen in other works in the 1901 exhibition which generally warned against materialism; and to the intensely topical issue of the worth of modern woman’s soul or character, which appeared widely in cultural discourse at the time, and in which Brickdale, as a woman, would have been expected to interest herself. Gilding is used here to invoke that long-established English proverb that warns against trusting in appearances in the pursuit of riches. This is not the reliable, genuinely precious golden apple of the beauty contest involving Paris, Helen and Venus; or of the race run by Atalanta, who was decoyed into losing her independence by the lure of golden apples; but a superficially valuable object or prize by which the unwary, gullible or greedy person stands to be duped. Modern woman’s role in this moral challenge was the turn-of-the-century society’s preoccupation: it is not certain whether it was the artist’s, but it could well have been her viewer’s. |
| author |
Gerrish Nunn, Pamela |
| author_facet |
Gerrish Nunn, Pamela |
| author_sort |
Gerrish Nunn, Pamela |
| title |
All is not Gold that Glitters: The Gilded Apple (1899) |
| title_short |
All is not Gold that Glitters: The Gilded Apple (1899) |
| title_full |
All is not Gold that Glitters: The Gilded Apple (1899) |
| title_fullStr |
All is not Gold that Glitters: The Gilded Apple (1899) |
| title_full_unstemmed |
All is not Gold that Glitters: The Gilded Apple (1899) |
| title_sort |
all is not gold that glitters: the gilded apple (1899) |
| publisher |
Polysèmes |
| publishDate |
2016 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/polysemes |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/polysemes.928 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/polysemes/928 |
| _version_ |
1877242529027457024 |
| spelling |
openedition-oai:revues.org:polysemes_928 https://doi.org/10.4000/polysemes.928 urn:doi:10.4000/polysemes.928 en https://journals.openedition.org/polysemes/928 2016-08-23T02:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/j64v All rights reserved All is not Gold that Glitters: The Gilded Apple (1899) Polysèmes SAIT info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2496-4212 info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/0999-4203 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/polysemes Gerrish Nunn, Pamela mythe or dorure artistes femmes valeur nouvelle femme myth gold gilding women artists value new woman In 1901, the neo-pre-Raphaelite artist Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale became an overnight success with a show of watercolours at the London dealers Dowdeswell’s. The works were characterised by critics as decorative moralities relying on allegory and literary reference. Focussing on one of these works, The Gilded Apple, allows an examination of this millennial moment of currency for the moral parable in which the traditional benchmark of wealth, good and benefit—gold—was a central referent.This intensely worked drawing was not explained by the artist, whom some critics reproached for the opacity of her stories. Notwithstanding, this choice of theme can be connected to her preoccupation with the competing appeal of worldly wealth and moral or spiritual richness, seen in other works in the 1901 exhibition which generally warned against materialism; and to the intensely topical issue of the worth of modern woman’s soul or character, which appeared widely in cultural discourse at the time, and in which Brickdale, as a woman, would have been expected to interest herself. Gilding is used here to invoke that long-established English proverb that warns against trusting in appearances in the pursuit of riches. This is not the reliable, genuinely precious golden apple of the beauty contest involving Paris, Helen and Venus; or of the race run by Atalanta, who was decoyed into losing her independence by the lure of golden apples; but a superficially valuable object or prize by which the unwary, gullible or greedy person stands to be duped. Modern woman’s role in this moral challenge was the turn-of-the-century society’s preoccupation: it is not certain whether it was the artist’s, but it could well have been her viewer’s. En 1901, l’artiste néo-préraphaélite Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale remporta un vif succès lors de son exposition d’aquarelles dans la galerie d’art Dowdeswell de Londres. Ses œuvres, décrites par les critiques comme des morales illustrées, représentaient des sujets allégoriques empruntés à la littérature. L’une de ces aquarelles, The Gilded Apple, permet d’examiner un moment-clé dans l’évolution de la parabole morale où l’or, ce marqueur traditionnel d’opulence et des valeurs du bien et du beau, constitue le référent central.The Gilded Apple est une œuvre très travaillée dont le sujet ne fait nulle part l’objet d’une explicitation de la part de l’artiste, à qui les critiques reprochaient parfois l’opacité de ses histoires peintes. Il est néanmoins clair que dans cette aquarelle, comme dans d’autres œuvres de l’exposition de 1901, l’artiste oppose richesses terrestres et richesses spirituelles pour mettre le spectateur en garde contre le matérialisme ambiant. En outre, The Gilded Apple invite à réfléchir au statut et à la valeur de la femme moderne, cette New Woman dont l’âme et le caractère faisaient l’objet d’âpres débats au tournant du siècle. Toutefois, la pomme « dorée » du titre (« gilded ») implique, selon le proverbe bien connu, que les apparences sont trompeuses et que tout ce qui brille n’est pas or. Il ne s’agit pas ici de l’authentique pomme d’or du jugement de Pâris, ni des précieuses pommes d’or grâce auxquelles Vénus parvint à freiner Atalante dans sa course. Au contraire, il est question ici d’une récompense de pacotille, d’un objet précieux seulement en apparence, de manière superficielle, et destiné à ceux ou celles qui, crédules, imprudents ou avaricieux, veulent bien se laisser duper. Dans ces conditions quel rôle la femme moderne joue-t-elle au juste dans cette scène ? Saura-t-elle montrer sa valeur en distinguant l’or véritable de l’illusion dorée ? Là est la question que l’artiste semble poser au public. |