13/02/2026
Spent time with J.E. Millais at his exhibition in Perth Gallery and Museum - the works have been donated by his grandson including his pallette and brushes. I kept returning to "Wake" a painting of his daughter Mary - supposedly woken by birdsong (hmm nice). A painting although sentimental has such exquisite beauty and weight.
What struck me most was the form of the blanket — not just symbolically, but physically. The child was supposedly a faithful likeness of his daughter Mary but it's the way that blanket is painted really gets me. The brush marks left a little thick to give the feeling of folds and woollen cloth, you can almost feel its heaviness pressing down, the rise of cloth rendered over the child with such care that it becomes the emotional centre of the work. It’s tender, restrained, and poetically human - we are reminded of that humanity in the blanket - our need to sleep - the child awake. And check out those tassels!
Also check out the painting at Guildtown and the twist and turn of the branches - his brush, played and danced with those tree limbs.
Remember this is one of the guys that started the Pre-Raphaelites and painted arguably the most famous work - "Ophelia" floating in the water. A visit is highly recommended as they have a great J D Fergusson exhibition and shout out to .guild my old tutor and .man for works there too.
