John Melhuish Strudwick: In the Golden Days, 1907

John Melhuish Strudwick (1849-1937) was an English Pre-Raphaelite painter with a style which exemplifies the essential qualities of refinement and other-worldliness of his art. Strudwick was preoccupied by the subject of passing time or of an imagined golden age. Strudwick's paintings were done in a blend of Renaissance and medieval styles, with meticulous attention to detail, especially in his treatment of draperies and accessories, and leading to a very small output. Some thirty of his paintings depict legendary and symbolic subjects, sometimes employing a lapidary technique from the Italian quattrocento. He employed rich, deep colours, faces clearly inspired by Burne-Jones and sumptuous drapery.

The title of this work, In The Golden Days, is taken from Tennyson's Idylls of the King from the part of the poem where Guinevere talks of her regret of her sins and desire to return to the idyllic time of her youth. The central figure dressed in green may therefore depict the young Guinevere, attended by two of her companions before she had met Arthur or Lancelot. The crown depicted on the bronze salver behind her and the lions rampant and Fleur-de-Lis on the heraldry probably relate to King Arthur whilst the knight carrying a golden sword and being crowned by angels, depicted in the panel above the window, is clearly the king her future husband holding Excalibur. The wild roses possibly relate to the illicit love of Lancelot.

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HC-780: card size 7" x 5" (178mm x 127mm)