Bell and Dorothy Freeman 

Edward Robert Hughes made this painting, "Bell and Dorothy Freeman," using watercolor, a medium easily associated with domestic craft and amateur pursuits, yet capable of great refinement. Look closely, and you'll see the soft, diffused light achieved through layering translucent washes of pigment. The dresses, rendered in delicate folds, possess a tactile quality despite being merely pigment on paper. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, with whom Hughes associated, admired the medieval guilds, in which no shame was attached to manual labor. This ethos is subtly reflected in the painting's painstaking execution, elevating what might have been a simple portrait to a work of considerable artistic labor. The choice of watercolor underscores this tension between the everyday and the exceptional. It challenges conventional hierarchies, reminding us that artistic value lies not in the material itself, but in the skill and vision brought to its transformation. This kind of painting demonstrates the importance of considering materials, making, and context in understanding art's full meaning.