Victorian Idyll

From the 1860s, Frederick Walker (1840–1875) was at the heart of a group of like-minded artists with roots in periodical and book illustration. Known from early on as Idyllists, they frequently ventured beyond the idyllic in the sense of a pastoral paradise. While they may have avoided the harsher realities of urban life and the mechanistic aspects of modern agriculture, they struggled with subjects of poverty, homelessness, and labor unrest. 

This focused display will also embrace the work of the highly successful Sir Hubert von Herkomer (1849–1914), who was deeply appreciative of Walker’s work, had his own connections with the world of illustration, and shared many of the themes of the Idyllists.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.