Fundación Mapfre Madrid Showcases Female Pre-Raphaelites in Landmark Exhibition

Curated by Pamela Gerrish Nunn, "Prerrafaelismo. Itinerarios femeninos (1850-1914)" opens at Fundación Mapfre in Madrid from September 24, 2026, to January 10, 2027, before traveling to La Piscine in Roubaix in March. The exhibition features nine sections and highlights women artists associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, founded in 1848 by Holman Hunt, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and John Everett Millais. While the Brotherhood lasted about three years, it influenced British painting for decades. Women like Elizabeth Siddal, Eleanor Vere Boyle, and Jemima Blackburn adapted Pre-Raphaelite principles of truth to nature, often working from gardens, domestic interiors, and family portraits due to limited access to formal training. The show includes painting, stained glass, embroidery, ceramics, and textiles, reflecting the Arts and Crafts movement's elevation of decorative arts. Key works include Anna Blunden's "The Song of the Shirt" (1854), Emma Sandys's "Sweet Dreams" (1876), and Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale's "The Pale Complexion of True Love" (1899). The exhibition also examines how these artists addressed social issues, landscape, portraiture, and medieval themes, and how their meticulous observation led to artistic autonomy.