Then to her tower she climb'd, and took the shield 1913

Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale made this painting, Then to her tower she climb'd, and took the shield, with watercolor, and gouache on paper. Brickdale's palette here is really interesting; she uses a range of muted, earthy colors, creating a hazy, dreamlike atmosphere. It's like she's building up the image through layers of color, letting each layer interact with the others. Up close, you can see the texture of the paper coming through the paint. This texture gives the painting a kind of liveliness. The way she's handled the paint in the young woman's dress is really great. The fabric seems to ripple and flow, almost like it's alive. Brickdale's work reminds me of other Pre-Raphaelite painters, like Rossetti, who were also interested in creating these kinds of lush, romantic images. But Brickdale brings her own unique sensibility to the genre, and her work feels both timeless and deeply personal. Ultimately, it's a reminder that art is always an ongoing conversation, a dialogue between artists across time and space.