A Greater Beauty

Beauty is a central them to my art and it is what draws me to certain types of art, music, literature and all kinds of creative expressions. The works of the Victorian and PreRaphaelite artists have long captivated me for this very reason. For many years, I have had a large print of John William Waterhouse's painting 'The Soul of the Rose' gracing one of the walls in my home. Beauty emanates from this work. In 2024, a student asked to do some portrait work with chalk pastels. We decided to have a go at creating our own versions of Waterhouse's painting using pastels. It took longer than expected and I almost gave up on it but after a break, I saw my version with fresh eyes and decided to persevere. Then, everything started to come together. I made a clear decision at a particular point to diverge from the original and make the artwork my own. The most notable difference being the colour of the roses which were pink but are now changed to gold. I included some vivid colours among the foliage - giving a nod to William Morris and his colourful designs. The lady herself is a bit more rounded in features. Upon completion, I settled on the title 'A Greater Beauty', encapsulating a number of thoughts spawned by the image. The focus of my reimagined artwork goes beyond the woman and even beyond the rose to the Author of beauty itself. Both woman and rose are great in beauty and have admiration for one another and yet neither settle their worship upon their companion but through their intoxication, they find a resting place for their hearts' longings in a greater beauty - that which flows from above, bathed in Divine glory.