slug: "gallery/modernisme"
translates: "gallery/modernisme"
lang: en
title: "Modernisme: Modernity begins"
thumbnail: "gallery/modernisme/DuncanJohn.jpg"
thumbnailAlt: "John Duncan’s “Saint Bride”"
description: "From Anastasia to Waterford, beautiful artworks from the turn of the century"
pageCreated: "2020-04-21"
pageUpdated: "2025-04-21"
extends ../gallery.pug
block main
h2
strong(lang="nl") Modernisme
small Modernity begins
ul.gallery
li.framed.landscape
img(src=qua("LadyWaterford.jpg") alt="David tends to his flock in a cartouche surrounded by greenery and biblical quotes")
figcaption
p.artist Louisa Beresford, Lady Waterford
time (1818–1891, England)
p.title
i David the Shepherd
time (c. 1870)
p.details Watercolour on paper. Adorns the walls of
a(href="/garden/2021/05/waterford") Lady Waterford Hall
| , Ford, Northd.
p I would be remiss not to include at least one work by the pre-Raphaelites. I’m no Christian, but something about Lady Waterford’s painterly style and vibrant colours really strikes a chord with me, no matter the subject.
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.framed.portrait
img(src=qua("RepinIlya.jpg") alt="An underwater kingdom of exotic royalty and jellyfish")
figcaption
p.artist Ilya Repin
time (1844–1930, Russia)
p.title
i Sadko
time (1876)
p.details Oil on canvas. Hangs at the
a(href="http://en.rusmuseum.ru/") Russian Museum
| , St Petersburg.
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.framed.portrait
img(src=qua("DeMorganEvelyn.jpg") alt="A young figure is accosted by the angel of death, bearing black wings and a scythe, at midday")
figcaption
p.artist Evelyn De Morgan
time (1855–1919, England)
p.title
i The Angel of Death I
time (1880)
p.details Oil on canvas. In the collection of the #[a(href="https://www.demorgan.org.uk/exhibitions-2/de-morgan-museum-cannon-hall/") De Morgan Museum], Barnsley.
p.acquired acquired MMXXV.IV.XXI
li.framed.landscape
img(src=qua("BoecklinArnold.jpg") alt="A white-veiled ferryman sails to an isolated, desolate island")
figcaption
p.artist Arnold Böcklin
time (1827–1901, Switzerland)
p.title
i Isle of the Dead III
time (1883)
p.details Oil on canvas. In the collection of the #[a(href="https://www.smb.museum/en/museums-institutions/alte-nationalgalerie/home//") Old National Gallery], Berlin.
p That i hadn’t seen this before 2025 should be a surprise, as in pre- and inter-war Europe this was a smash hit — Freud, Lenin, and Hitler all proudly put copies on display. (Make of that what you will.)
p.acquired acquired MMXXV.IV.XXI
li.framed.portrait
img(src=qua("GallenKallelaAkseli.jpg") alt="A group of craftsmen in the woods watch in awe at the process of forging")
figcaption
p.artist Akseli Gallen-Kallela
time (1865–1931, Finland)
p.title
i The Forging of the Sampo
time (1893)
p.details Oil on canvas. In the collection of the #[a(href="https://ateneum.fi/en/") Ateneum], Helsinki.
p.acquired acquired MMXXV.IV.XXI
li.portrait
img(src=qua("ThesleffEllen.jpg") alt="A young woman stares at the viewer, the view hazy and obscured")
figcaption
p.artist Ellen Thesleff
time (1869–1954, Finland)
p.title
| Self-portrait
time (1895)
p.details Pencil and sepia on paper. In the collection of the #[a(href="https://ateneum.fi/en/") Ateneum], Helsinki.
p.acquired acquired MMXXV.IV.XXI
li.portrait
img(src=qua("BeardsleyAubrey.jpg") alt="A woman in a long robe of peacock feathers converses with another figure")
figcaption
p.artist Aubrey Beardsley
time (1872–1898, England)
p.title
i The Peacock Skirt
time (1893)
p.details Ink on paper. In the collection of the #[a(href="https://harvardartmuseums.org//") Harvard Art Museums], Massachusetts.
p.acquired acquired MMXXV.IV.XXI
li.portrait
img(src=qua("SteinlenTheophile.png") alt="An art nouveau poster with a handsome cat")
figcaption
p.artist Théophile Alexandre Steinlen
time (1859–1923, France)
p.title Poster for the
i(lang="fr") Tournée du Chat Noir
time (1896)
p.details Colour lithograph. Hangs at Rutgers’
a(href="https://zimmerli.rutgers.edu/") Zimmerli Art Museum
| , New Jersey.
p This stylish art-nouveau poster advertised a nationwide tour of Paris’ Chat Noir, oft described as the first modern cabaret.
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.framed.portrait
img(src=qua("ParrishMaxfield.jpg") alt="Chiron teaching Jason archery, on a gorgeous, saturated blue mountain backdrop")
figcaption
p.artist Maxfield Parrish
time (1870–1966, U.S.)
p.title
i Jason and His Teacher
time (1909)
p.details Oil on canvas. Private collection.
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.framed.landscape
img(src=qua("KnuepferBenes.jpg") alt="Fauns run away from the headlights of an automobile in the dead of night")
figcaption
p.artist Beneš Knüpfer
time (1844–1910, Czechia)
p.title
i Fauns Fleeing Before an Automobile
time (1905)
p.details Oil on canvas. Hangs at the
a(href="https://www.ngprague.cz/") National Gallery Prague
| .
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.framed.landscape
img(src=qua("FarquharsonJoseph.jpg") alt="A woman walks past a snowy garden")
figcaption
p.artist Joseph Farquharson
time (1846–1935, Scotland)
p.title
i Winter Day at Finzean
time (c. 1901)
p.details Oil on canvas. Hangs at the
a(href="https://www.nationalgalleries.org/") Scottish National Gallery
| , Edinburgh.
p People will rag on Thomas Kinkade but then add this to their prestigious collections. Curious!
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.framed.landscape
img(src=qua("CurranCharlesCourtney.jpg") alt="A russet-haired white woman in a white lace dress beckons the viewer into a verdant birch forest")
figcaption
p.artist Charles Courtney Curran
time (1861–1942, U.S.)
p.title
i The Edge of the Woods
time (1912)
p.details Oil on canvas. Unknown provenance.
p.acquired acquired MMXXIII.I.XXVII
li.framed.portrait
img(src=qua("KirchnerErnst.jpg") alt="A depressed artist having a lie down on a sofa")
figcaption
p.artist Ernst Kirchner
time (1880–1938, Germany)
p.title
i(lang="de") Artistin (Marzella)
|
time (1910)
p.details Oil on canvas. Hangs at the
a(href="https://www.bruecke-museum.de/de/") Brücke Museum
| , Berlin.
p It’s astonishing how modern (for lack of a better word) someone who lived over a century ago can look.
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.framed.landscape
img(src=qua("DuncanJohn.jpg") alt="Two angels fly over a turbulent sea carrying a long-haired blonde maiden, where a sea lion swims")
figcaption
p.artist John Duncan
time (1866–1945, Scotland)
p.title
i Saint Bride
time (1913)
p.details Tempera on canvas. Hangs at the
a(href="https://www.nationalgalleries.org/") Scottish National Gallery
| , Edinburgh.
p
| This is my favourite of the whole lot. Much like its subject, a Christian syncretism of the pagan
span.theonym Brigid
| , this painting brings together Romantic paintings, Celtic knots, and insular tapestries — and yet still, it manages to feel like so much more. The geometric patterns and colourful garments evoke the traditional arts of southern Africa, while the angels’ shimmering patchwork wings bring to mind the ravens and totems of Cascadia’s Salish peoples. A true masterpiece, a work of art that brings the whole world together, if there ever was one.
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.photo.portrait
img(src=qua("Anastasia.jpg") alt="A young girl poses humorously for a photo with fake teeth")
figcaption
p.artist Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia
time (1901–1918, Russia)
p.title Self-portrait with fake teeth
time (c. 1915)
p.details Photograph. In the collection of Yale’s
a(href="https://beinecke.library.yale.edu/") Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
| , New Haven.
p Anastasia, unsung pioneer of the selfie, would soon after have her camera access revoked and (one presumes for unrelated reasons) be executed by firing squad.
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.landscape
img(src=qua("BendaWT.png") alt="A charcoal drawing of the earth and moon as seen from space")
figcaption
p.artist Władysław T. Benda
time (1873–1948, Poland)
p.title The
span.theonym Earth
| and the Milky Way and the moon
time (1918)
p.details Charcoal drawing. In the collection of the
a(href="https://www.loc.gov") Library of Congress
| , Washington.
p.acquired acquired MMXXII.XI.XXIII
li.landscape
img(src=qua("WainLouis.jpg") alt="A fluffy ginger kitten on a floral pattern background")
figcaption
p.artist Louis Wain
time (1860–1939, England)
p.title
i Kitty
time (1931)
p.details Coloured pencil on paper. Private collection.
p.acquired acquired MMXXIII.I.XXVII
li.portrait
img(src=qua("WeidhaasArthur.jpg") alt="Photograph shows side view of a cat wearing a winged helmet and breastplate armor in the role of the valkyrie Brünnhilde from the opera Der Ring des Niebelungen.")
figcaption
p.artist Arthur Weidhaas
time (1891–1976), U.S.)
p.title
i “Brünnhilde”
time (1936)
p.details Photograph. In the collection of the
a(href="https://www.loc.gov/resource/ppmsca.51533/") Library of Congress
| , Washington.
p
| I went down quite the rabbit hole trying to figure out who made this delightful little photo, attributed by the Library of Congress to one “Adolph E. Weidhaas”. Via a
a(href="https://twitter.com/ZambranaML/status/1610526948102639617") Twitter thread
| and perhaps unreliable
a(href="https://www.ancientfaces.com/person/arthur-weidhaas-birth-1891-death-1976/12987121") obituary website
| , it seems like he changed his name to Arthur after the war, and worked at New York’s Metropolitan Opera (hence the subject of this feline cosplay).
p Every time this photo does the rounds online, its creator is credited as Adolph — a name forever tinged with the stain of war. It would be nice if, going forward, we could finally call Arthur Weidhaas by his own name.
p.acquired acquired MMXXIII.I.XXVII
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