George Frederic Watts: Little Red Riding Hood, 1890

image courtesy of Birmingham Museums Trust

George Frederic Watts (1817-1904) was a British painter and sculptor associated with the Symbolist movement. He became famous in his lifetime for his allegorical works, such as Hope and Love and Life. These paintings were intended to form part of an epic symbolic cycle called the "House of Life", in which the emotions and aspirations of life would all be represented in a universal symbolic language.

In 1886, at the age of 69, Watts rmarried Mary Fraser Tytler, a Scottish designer and potter, then aged 36. In 1891 he bought land near Compton, south of Guildford, in Surrey. The couple named the house Limnerslease and built the Watts Gallery nearby, a museum dedicated to his work. This was the first purpose-built gallery in Britain devoted to a single artist, and opened in April 1904, shortly before his death. Watts's wife Mary had designed the nearby earlier Watts Mortuary Chapel, which Watts paid for; he also painted a version of The All-Pervading for the altar only three months before he died. Both Limnerslease and the chapel are now maintained, and the house owned, by the Watts Gallery.

Little Red Riding Hood is a European fairy tale about a young girl and a sly wolf; it's origins can be traced back to several pre-17th century folk tales. The two best known versions were written by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm. The story has been changed considerably in various retellings and subjected to numerous modern adaptations and readings.

the above text appears on the back of the card
HC-1321: card size 7" x 5" (178mm x 127mm)