Art is the Solution

And when did you last see your father?  Source: Wikimedia Commons The nineteenth century was a prime time for history painting. Traditionally, history painting—which takes its name from the Latin word historia , meaning story—is simply a narrative style of painting. However, in the nineteenth century, British painters took history painting in a different direction and increasingly used the genre to portray events from their country’s past. History paintings quickly became popular with the public as well as offering artists a useful vehicle to explore heightened emotion or to convey the artist’s ideas about the lessons offered by the past. William Frederick Yeames was one of the leading history painters of his time; although his work was popular with the public, it received little critical acclaim from other artists. Yeames had a particular interest in portraying subjects from the Tudor and Stuart periods. His work was not always historically accurate. Instead, Yeames used historica...

A Visit to the Haunted Chamber Source: Wikimedia Commons British painter William Frederick Yeames is probably best known for history paintings, which often depict scenes from England’s past, focusing especially on events from the Tudor and Stuart dynasties. Yeames’ style is clean and precise, reminiscent of the neat, smoothness of the Neoclassical style.  However, the painting I’m going to talk about today is much creepier (and more comedic) than any of Yeames’ historical dramas. A Visit to the Haunted Chamber is a contemporary comedic scene with a spooky twist. The piece depicts two young women of the Victorian age entering a bedroom in what seems to be a very old house. The Victorians were very interested in history, which they used as a vehicle to understand their position in the modern world. During this time, historical fiction and other romanticized narratives about history became increasingly popular. A Visit to the Haunted Chamber depicts the common pastime of visiting a hi...