Interestingly, in the play, Shakespeare employs the moon in order to portray the passing of time and the phases of one’s life. A waning crescent is a wise, aged moon that has already gone through every phase in the cycle – which could be a reflection of the fairies’ wisdom as suggested by the artist

The painting is set in a thick forest with no civilization in sight. The figures almost look as if they are part of the landscape, like glowing fireflies. Oberon wears a headdress resembling a white tulip or lily, and their draperies mimic flowers too, with Titania’s blossom-like sleeve

The interest in the supernatural was also a form of escapism from the rapidly-changing Victorian societies. Industrialisation and growth of the suburbs brought about an increased longing for themes pertaining to the natural world that began to disappear from one’s day to day life.

This openness in regards to sexuality and physicality would have been shocking had the couple not been otherworldly beings, thereby permitting von Holst to portray an exposed scene without much repercussions.

In the Victorian Era the phenomenon of Fairy Painting could be seen as a measure for bypassing the censor. Here, the pair is depicted in a sensual pose: their bodies rub against each other, Oberon’s cheeks are flushed, and Titania has a rather flirtatious demeanour as she is receiving a kiss

Shakespeare often contrasted the airy and refined creatures with humans who were typically more blundering and fleshy. In the painting, the watery brushwork creates a sense of delicacy: Titania’s hands, clasped around her lover’s neck, merge into one, blending until the outlines are merely suggested

The face masks were worn instead of SPF! Women would wear black velvet ‘vizards’ outside so they wouldn’t tan. Later on though it became an “incognito” thing, mystique, Italy, and all…. 🎭

Skulls, skeletons, and phantasms emerge, observing the general and presage his impending demise. The artist deliberately embraces ambiguity, leaving the viewer uncertain whether these figures are genuine apparitions or merely products of fevered hallucinations and a delayed sense of guilt

I know!!!! 💚💙

Two more by the same artist — Utagawa Hiroshige II (I’m obsessed)
‘Tsuchiyama’ (1863)
‘Crossing over the Valley in Sedan Chairs’ (1853)

Stunning! Reminded me of this 1854 ‘The Eastern Genji in the Snow Covered Garden’ by Hiroshige II

Can’t stop looking at it on my iPad. True definition of a dissonance. Horrible. But bittersweet. Bittersweet melancholy

Private collection I think. I rummaged through the internet but no luck for the location. If the keeper of this painting sees this post, I beg, I just want 10 minutes with it

Cathartic sadness. I wouldn’t mind crawling into that. I see comfort there too

Swallows you. I just want this canvas to wash over me like a warm dream

www.faheykleingallery.com/picture-stor...

youtu.be/3U5dvC5qr6Y?...

monoskop.org/images/b/bc/...

For Malevich, the suprematist radical reduction of visual elements to their most essential, foundational state, was not merely an absence but a generative void from which new artistic possibilities could emerge; that later laid the groundwork for modern art’s conceptual and formal innovation.

Suprematism emerged during the Russian Revolution, reflecting the utopian aspirations of the time. While initially aligned with the state’s ideals, Malevich’s focus on spirituality and pure abstraction later diverged from Soviet’s utilitarian, indoctrinating, and sanitised approach to art.