The story behind Beata Beatrix
By Imogen
Hello everyone! Today we are going to talk about Dante Gabriel Rossetti's painting Beata Beatrix and the story behind how this piece of art was created.
Beata Beatrix was painted by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. He started it around 1864 and finished it around 1870. Rossetti was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, a group of painters who were inspired by things such as pre-renaissance art and the medieval ages. Some other famous Pre-Raphaelite painters include John Everett Millais and William Holman Hunt.
You may recognize the woman in this painting. Her name is Elizabeth Siddal. She is a famous pre-Raphaelite model and is most commonly known for being the model in John Everett Milliais’s Ophelia, but there is much more to her story. For one, she was a poet and painter herself, as well as the wife of Rossetti. In this painting, Siddal is depicted as Beatrice Portinari from Dante Alighieri's 1294 poem "La Vita Nuova" and from his novel The Divine Comedy. Rossetti seems to be drawing a comparison between the two Dantes and their lovers. He compares his and Elizabeth’s love to that of the love between Dante and Beatrice.
Elizabeth looks to be in a trance-like state, her eyes closed, and her face stretched towards the sun. The colors and lighting are warm and deep, and a feeling of peace seems to wash over the painting, but there seems to be another emotion lingering beneath the painting. When I look at this painting, I feel a sense of sadness as well as peace. This may be because by the time Rossetti started to paint this piece, his wife had already passed away. Siddal passed away in 1862, and the painting was begun in 1864. To me, this painting seems to be a tribute to Elizabeth and their love. The dove in the painting delivers a white poppy into the arms of Siddal. The poppy represents laudanum, which is a derivative of opium. This detail is quite poignant as Siddal died due to an overdose. To the upper left of the painting is a man in red cloth. He is the personification of love. On the other side of the painting is Dante himself (the painter). A sundial rests in a pool of light, pointing to the time of Beatrice's death in La Vita Nuova. As can be seen through the details of this painting, it is truly a very personal piece. This could be why Rossetti at first refused to paint a copy. Eventually though, he did make a copy of the painting and changed a few things in the new version. The most notable change that he made to his second copy was adding a panel at the bottom of the painting. The painted scene depicted Dante and Beatrice reunited, allowing for a happy ending.
Just like with most art, Beata Beatrix is beautiful to look at but even more interesting when the story behind it is learned. When I think about Rossetti and Siddal, I think about their complicated relationship. Rossetti was known to cheat on Siddal with multiple women and was very hesitant to marry her. After she married Rossetti, Siddal suffered a miscarriage that left her depressed. Siddal was not in good health throughout her life, which contributed to her eventual laudanum addiction. She suffered so much tragedy throughout her life but was also able to achieve so much. Not only was she one of the most famous models for the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, but she was also a part of the group, as well. She was the only woman to exhibit at a Pre-Raphaelite exhibition in 1857. She was an artist and a poet all in her own right. She passed away in 1862 from an overdose. When Dante found her, he at first refused to believe she was dead, instead insisting that she was simply in a coma. There was a suggestion that he found a suicide note from Elizabeth, but suicide was considered illegal, so it was said that Dante asked a friend to burn it.
I think this story truly amplifies the feelings that come with looking at this painting. Suddenly, when we know the story behind it, we tend to linger a little longer, tend to think over the painting even more. I think this story makes the painting Beta Beatrix even more moving as we consider the tragic life of Elizabeth and the love that was shared between both painter and model; when you look at this painting, you cannot deny that Rossetti must have cared for Siddal (even if he did treat her horribly). People can be complicated, strange, nuanced creatures and I think stories like those of Dante and Elizabeth are examples of this. While Rossetti did not always treat Siddal with kindness, he decided to paint Beata Beatrix to honor her, to have her last image be that of her in a peaceful state, not concerned with death, not ravaged with sickness. We see no sadness written on her face. All we see is a beautiful woman who has finally found peace. Maybe that is why so many people love this painting, because as complicated as the relationship between Rossetti and Siddal was, at its core, this painting was created out of love. This painting was made so we could see Siddal as Rossetti did: beautiful, loved, and finally at peace.And with all that being said, I would like to leave you with one last thing, a poem that Elizabeth Siddal herself wrote:
Lord May I Come?
About the author: Imogen is a writer and lover of history. She is the founder of Clothing and Canvas, a blog dedicated to fashion and art history. When not writing for her blog, you can find her staring at pretty dresses and paintings, reading, knitting, or playing viola.
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