John William Waterhouse

1849–1917

In Tate Britain

Walk Through British Art: 1840

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In Tate Britain

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Biography

John William Waterhouse (6 April 1849 – 10 February 1917) was an English painter known for working first in the Academic style and for then embracing the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood's style and subject matter. His artworks were known for their depictions of women from both ancient Greek mythology and Arthurian legend.

Born in Rome to English parents who were both painters, Waterhouse later moved to London, where he enrolled in the Royal Academy of Art. He soon began exhibiting at their annual summer exhibitions, focusing on the creation of large canvas works depicting scenes from the daily life and mythology of ancient Greece.

Waterhouse's work is currently displayed at several major British art galleries, and the Royal Academy of Art organised a major retrospective of his work in 2009.

In January 2018, curators at Manchester Art Gallery caused controversy by temporarily removing a Waterhouse painting, Hylas and the Nymphs, from public display in order to connect it with a current conversation on cultural attitudes about women.

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