Dante Gabriel Rossetti
By the early 1850’s the Brotherhood had disbanded, due to conflict over whether to allow medieval influences, which sometimes contradicted the aim of realism to be a key feature of their art.
Dante Gabriel Rossetti was a keen supporter of using medieval influences in his paintings, as a way of linking art and literature in a meaningful way. His popularity
and success, led to a second ‘wave’ for the Pre-Raphaelites in the 1860s, and it was this wave that William Morris was a part of.
Inspired by medieval images, Rossetti’s work became increasingly symbolic and less realistic as the decades progressed. His passion for Elizabeth Siddal, whom he met in 1850 and married in 1860, also influenced the type of models that became a key feature of Pre-Raphaelite art.
Through Rossetti’s friendship with Morris, the ideals and aesthetic of medievalism became an important feature of the designs created by Morris and Company, and found their way into the homes and lives of The Firm’s customers.