Art is the Solution

Spring of Apple Blossoms Source: Wikimedia Commons Today is the first day of spring! To celebrate the changing of the seasons, I wanted to share a painting that represents the season of spring.  Spring or Apple Blossoms was created by British artist John Everett Millais at a time of transition in his own life.  Millais is an extraordinary figure in the story of British art. Throughout his long career, he enjoyed a level of fame, public recognition, and commercial success that was almost unprecedented among professional artists. Millais was one of the leading painters of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, a group of  painters who rejected “trivial” scenes of everyday life, preferring to focus on subjects that were rich in symbolism, including religious, mythological, literary, and historical scenes.  However, when Millais painted Spring, he was starting to move away from his Pre-Raphaelite roots. In 1855, Millais married Effie Gray* (the well-known ex-wife of art critic John Ruskin) and mov