The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was founded in 1848 by a group of seven young men. The most important of these were the artists William Holman Hunt, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and John Everett Millais.

They were rebelling against what they called 'slosh' - the loose brushwork and dark colours used in British Romantic painting. Instead they painted in bright colours, using small brushes to build up each part of a picture in thin layers.

They were deliberately emulating what they thought were the purer vision and methods used by artists working before the High Renaissance, in Italy in the early sixteenth century. This is why they called themselves the Pre-Raphaelites.

The first paintings they exhibited were religious, literary and historical. They soon also began to paint landscapes and scenes of modern life. Many Pre-Raphaelite works represent moments of revelation or confrontation designed to create psychological tension. Objects are often presented as symbols to be decoded, encouraging the viewer to look for deeper meanings.

The Pre-Raphaelites attracted many followers, as well as a network of dealers and collectors who saw their art as high-minded, dealing with the spiritual and social issues that were relevant to modern, industrial Britain.

This display has been devised by curators Alison Smith and Rachel Tant

BP British Art Displays 1500-2007