MOST IMPORTANT U.S. COLLECTION OF VICTORIAN ART COMES TO THE
SAN DIEGO M– USEUM OF ART
Waking Dreams: The Art of the Pre-Raphaelites from the Delaware Art Museum
May 19–July 29, 2007
story courtesy of http://www.sdmart.org, photos by http://www.ReviewerPhoto.com
SAN DIEGO—This spring, the San Diego Museum of Art will showcase some of the most iconic images
of 19th-century British art in the internationally touring exhibition Waking Dreams: The Art of the Pre-Raphaelites
from the Delaware Art Museum.
Drawn from the largest and most prestigious collection of Pre-Raphaelite art
outside the United Kingdom, Waking Dreams spans most of the Victorian period and includes paintings,
watercolors, drawings, ceramics, jewelry, and furniture from some of the most important artists of the era. In
addition, many of the 130 works on view have not been seen outside of Wilmington, Delaware, since their
acquisition at the turn of the century. Waking Dreams will be on view from May 19 to July 29, 2007.
“San Diego will be the final venue in the touring version of this remarkable collection. The Delaware
Art Museum’s vast holdings of art by the Pre-Raphaelites are unparalleled in this country. The Pre-Raphaelites
were extraordinarily intelligent artists, combining an appreciation for time-honored techniques and craft with a
skepticism about the modernization of Britain. Their accomplishments went beyond painting, to book arts,
photography, and the decorative arts, all of which will be part of the San Diego presentation. We are grateful
to our colleagues at the Delaware Art Museum for allowing such important artworks to come to San Diego,”
says the San Diego Museum of Art’s executive director, Derrick Cartwright. “As soon as visitors step into our
galleries, they will be transported by these exquisite images depicting well-known narratives and references
from Western literature and history.”
The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood emerged in 1848 when three young British artists—Dante Gabriel
Rossetti, William Holman Hunt, and John Everett Millais—along with other like-minded artists, banded
together to revolutionize British art. They hoped to achieve this through the study of nature as a primary
source, the expression of genuine ideas, and the avoidance of over-utilized artistic formulas. They believed
these virtues were embodied in the late medieval art produced in Western Europe immediately preceding the
painting of the Renaissance master Raphael, hence the name the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.
The Brotherhood was a reaction to the dramatic changes impacting Britain as a result of the Industrial
Revolution. Often, they derived their influences from the variety of “revival” movements that contributed to the
development of British art and culture during those decades. The medieval revival inspired the Pre-Raphaelites
to draw pictorial representations from the King Arthur legend, as well as the writings of Dante, Chaucer, and
Shakespeare. Biblical stories, ancient mythology, and the epic works of English poets Byron, Keats, and
Tennyson were also used as sources for their paintings.
As rebels against the strict artistic traditions of the Royal Academy, the Pre-Raphaelite artists’ fine and
precise style often relied on a bright palette. The members of the group transformed their high ideals into
separate artistic identities, resulting in a variety of individual stylistic approaches to emerge, coexist, and often
compete, throughout the remainder of the century.
Highlights of the exhibition include Water Willow and Lady Lilith by Rossetti, Romeo and Juliet and The
Dream of Sardanapalus by Ford Madox Brown, and Mary Magdalene by Frederick Sandys. The ceramics,
metalwork, jewelry, and furniture made by members of the group, also on view, anticipate the Arts and Crafts
Movement led by William Morris at the end of the 19th-century.
The Collection
The Delaware Art Museum’s collection of Pre-Raphaelite art was donated by the heirs of Samuel
Bancroft, Jr. (1840-1915), a textile manufacturer and patron of the arts. As the only collector of Pre-
Raphaelite art in the United States at the turn of the century, Bancroft’s enthusiasm for the movement was
unique for its time and place. His collection hung in his Wilmington home, “Rockford,” and after his death in
1915, his family gave it to the Wilmington Society of the Fine Arts (the predecessor of the Delaware Art
Museum) in 1935. Since then, the Museum has augmented the collection with purchases, gifts, and bequests,
making it the premier Pre-Raphaelite collection in the United States.
Related Programs
In conjunction with the exhibition, SDMA will offer a variety of related programs, including Insight
Gallery Talks led by James Grebl, Ph.D., SDMA manager of library services; Sonnets at Six, a series of exhibition
tours that will include readings of literature from the Pre-Raphaelite time period; and Art-Inspired Stories,
storytelling programs perfect for the whole family.
Catalogue
The exhibition is accompanied by a major, 396-page scholarly catalogue with full-color illustrations of
all objects in the exhibition and individual entries by leading experts in the field.
Waking Dreams: The Art of the Pre-Raphaelites from the Delaware Art Museum is organized and
circulated by Art Services International, Alexandria, Virginia.
Local presentation is made possible by the generous support of the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture,
the County of San Diego Community Enhancement Program, and members of the San Diego Museum of Art.
Museum Information
San Diego Museum of Art
1450 El Prado, Balboa Park
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 122107
San Diego, CA 92112-2107
General Information: (619) 232-7931 / Facsimile: (619) 232-9367
Group Sales: (619) 696-1915
Web site: www.sdmart.org
The historic San Diego Museum of Art provides a rich and diverse cultural experience for more than 400,000 annual
visitors. Located in the heart of beautiful Balboa Park, the Museum’s nationally renowned collections include Spanish and
Italian old masters, a vast Asian collection, 19th- and 20th-century American paintings and sculptures, and an
international selection of contemporary art in all media. In addition, the Museum regularly features major exhibitions of
art from around the world with exhibition texts in English and Spanish, as well as an extensive year-round schedule of
supporting cultural and educational programs.
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