Desdemona 1881

Dante Gabriel Rossetti made this pencil drawing of Desdemona, the tragic heroine from Shakespeare's Othello, during the mid-19th century. Rossetti and his Pre-Raphaelite brethren often looked to literature for subjects that explored themes of love, beauty, and morality. This image creates meaning through visual codes that spoke to Victorian audiences. The Pre-Raphaelites often challenged the conservative artistic establishment of their time by embracing romantic and emotional themes. Here, Desdemona is depicted in a moment of melancholic reflection, perhaps foreseeing her tragic end. Her loose hair and flowing gown, depart from the highly structured compositions and idealized forms favored by the Royal Academy, where artistic and social norms were defined and maintained. The Pre-Raphaelites sought to challenge those norms. By studying Rossetti's letters, diaries, and the exhibition reviews of the time, we can understand the nuances of this artwork in its original social and institutional context. We can appreciate how it questioned the aesthetic conventions of the Victorian era.