Holman Hunt

Mary Elizabeth ColeridgeProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 69K words
Chapters: 7

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Holman Hunt by Mary E. ColeridgeAuthor: Coleridge, Mary E. (Mary Elizabeth), 1861-1907,Language: English, Class: ND: Fine Arts: Painting, Release Date: Jun 7, 2011

Editor's review

Mary E. Coleridge's Holman Hunt is a substantial character study in late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century British art criticism, focusing on the life and work of the Pre-Raphaelite painter Holman Hunt. Its strength lies in the author's shared cultural circle with her subject, giving her writing the warmth of firsthand observation: she discusses the themes, composition, and moral import of the paintings as well as the painter's character and the spirit of his age. The text is in English, in a Victorian critical idiom with long sentences and an unhurried narrative, suited to slow reading by those interested in Pre-Raphaelite painting and the Victorian art world. As a public-domain ebook, it serves better as research material or reading for interest than as a systematic art history textbook; readers without basic background may struggle with the paintings and names and should read it alongside visual material and an introductory art history text.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in Pre-Raphaelite painting and Victorian art
Scholars working at the intersection of English literature and art, with an interest in the Coleridge family's writing
Readers with English reading ability who wish to understand early art criticism's style
Museum guides or art educators seeking background material on figures

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting high-quality reproductions or image-based analysis
Beginners with limited English who are unwilling to look up background knowledge
Students preparing for exams who want a systematic general art history textbook

Reading tips

Before reading, browse images of Holman Hunt's major works to build a visual impression, then turn to the written criticism
Make a chapter-by-chapter index of people and works, noting the titles of paintings mentioned for later cross-checking
When encountering long critical sentences, grasp the claim first, then return to the argument, so Victorian rhetoric does not slow the pace
Read alongside a general history of the Pre-Raphaelites to fill in the period background the book leaves undeveloped

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a picture album or written criticism?

It is primarily written criticism and character study, not a picture album. The book discusses the themes and style of paintings, but the public-domain ebook usually contains no high-quality plates. Readers need to prepare their own images of Holman Hunt's works to read alongside the text and better understand its visual descriptions.

What was the author's relationship to Holman Hunt?

Mary E. Coleridge was a British writer of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, writing within the same cultural circle. This book is a critical character study with the quality of close contemporary observation, but specific details of their acquaintance should be based on the book's own account and not over-inferred.

Can I read it without a background in art history?

You can, but with some difficulty. Names of people, paintings, and exhibition contexts are dense, and without background you may easily get lost. It is advisable to read a brief introduction to the Pre-Raphaelites first, learning the main members and their stylistic aims, before starting this book; the reading experience will be much smoother.

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About the author

Mary Elizabeth Coleridge Author · British · 1861–1907

Mary Elizabeth Coleridge (1861–1907) was an English poet and novelist of the late Victorian period. She came from a distinguished British cultural family and was related to the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, growing up surrounded by literature and art. Her work spans both poetry and fiction: her poems are concise in language and restrained in imagery, often meditative and introspective, while her novels focus on women's circumstances and emotional lives with a controlled, delicate touch. The library holds one work by her, Holman Hunt, a critical piece on the Victorian painter Holman Hunt, showing her interest in the visual arts as well. Because public information is limited, details of her life and the full range of her work cannot be described in depth; yet her surviving writings give her a place in the tradition of late Victorian women's writing, and her poetry in particular has drawn attention in later anthologies.