Art is the Solution

Green Summer Source: Wikimedia Commons Happy summer! In honor of the first day of the season, I want to share a painting by the great Pre-Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones. Burne-Jones stands out as one of the most productive and talented artists of his age; like many Pre-Raphaelites, he was driven by a desire to create serious and meaningful art. However, by the time Burne-Jones painted Green Summer in 1868, his art was beginning to move toward the values of the Aestheticism movement. Aestheticism in art is often defined as “art for art’s sake;” painters who embrace Aestheticism tend to prioritize the beauty of the piece and its aesthetic value over the meaning or moral significance of the painting. In many ways, the values of Aestheticism and Pre-Raphaelitism are completely opposite.  However, Burne-Jones continued to embrace the Pre-Raphaelite aesthetic in his work throughout his career. Famously, Burne-Jones’ paintings were heavily inspired by medieval artwork. This can be ...