Steps in a Garden, by William Henry Millais (1828-1899). Steps in a Garden. 1860. Watercolour and gouache on paper. 13 3/8 x 10 1/4 inches (33.8 x 26 cm). Collection: Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, accession no. 2013.240. Image courtesy of CMA's Open Access Initiative. [Click on the image to enlarge it.]
In this unusual format for Millais he shows us a vertical view of a hilly woodscape garden with its bright colours and splendid lighting effects. As a young man William had been influenced by the writings of John Ruskin as has been pointed out by Heather Lemonedes: "Rather than slavishly copying nature, Ruskin advocated close, accurate looking, believing that the education of the eye was the first step on the path to knowledge. The Ruskinian ideal transcended observation and description to consider the more profound question of nature's design and mystery. The natural and man-made world intersect in the sequestered landscape depicted in Steps in a Garden. Rough-hewn steps and a railing fashioned from cut branches ascend a rugged slope, a sign of human intervention in the landscape. A smattering of light pierces the dense canopy of trees, allowing little to flourish except for the foxgloves that adorn the foreground. Ivy growing on the hillside, a decaying stump, and moss-covered steps suggest the passage of time. William's use of emerald green and vivid pink is typical of the intense Pre-Raphaelite palette. The corner of nature seems emblematic of the artist himself, apparently content in the shadow of John Everett" (112).
As late as 1895 Millais painted a watercolour entitled View in a Wood, using this same vertical format, that sold at Doyle Auctioneers in New York on May 21, 2024, lot 76. This work featured the same bright colours and exacting detail of his early Pre-Raphaelite landscapes.
Bibliography
Lemonedes, Heather. British Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art. London: D Giles Limited, 2013, cat. 37, 112-13.
Old Master Paintings. New York: Doyle Auctioneers (21 May 2024): lot 76.
Steps in a Garden. Cleveland Museum of Art. Web. 13 November 2024.
Created 13 November 2024