Artwork Page for The Garden Court

Details / Information for The Garden Court

The Garden Court

1870–75

Edward Burne-Jones

(British, 1833–1898)
Culture
England, 19th century
Medium
graphite and watercolor, heightened with white gouache
Support
White wove paper
Measurements
Matted: 54.3 x 81.4 x 0.8 cm (21 3/8 x 32 1/16 x 5/16 in.); Frame: 61.3 x 88.9 x 3.2 cm (24 1/8 x 35 x 1 1/4 in.); Image: 32.3 x 60.2 cm (12 11/16 x 23 11/16 in.)
Credit Line
Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund 1994.197
Public Domain
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.
Location
Not on view
Print
?

Did You Know?

Art historian Andrea Wolk Rager has interpreted this drawing as related to Edward Burne-Jones's socialist beliefs, identifying the weaver at right in the work as a personification of artistic labor, dormant in industrialized Victorian society.

Description

The story of Briar Rose (known popularly as "Sleeping Beauty") occupied Edward Burne-Jones on and off for much of his career. He completed three related sets of paintings of the subject over a 30-year period. This drawing probably relates to the first series, now in the Museo de Arte in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Here, vines twist in arabesques against a flat, chartreuse background, as though ensnaring the six servants asleep at a loom and well.
A horizontally oriented tempera painting depicts six women with light skin tones in a green garden. On the left, three women rest near a stone basin and jars. On the right, three others recline against a yellow wooden scaffold. All figures wear draped white gowns and have their eyes closed in sleep. Arched white lines fill the green background. The foreground features a teal tiled floor covered by a shallow layer of water.

The Garden Court

1870–75

Edward Burne-Jones

(British, 1833–1898)
England, 19th century

See Also

Visually Similar by AI

Contact Us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please fill out the appropriate request form linked below:

Update or Correct Artwork Information

Imagery or Rights for Non-Open-Access Artworks

Report a Website Issue

Further Questions About This Artwork