Boreas and the Fallen Leaves by Evelyn De Morgan (1850-1919). 1910-1914. Oil on canvas. H 91.3 x W 119.8 cm. De Morgan Collection: Accession no. P_EDM_0044. Photographed by Laurent Bury at Wightwick Manor in July 2024. Caption details from Art UK.
Closer view of Boreas.
In this dynamic visualisation of the change of seasons, Boreas, the north wind, and the most powerful of the four winds in classical mythology, appears between the gnarled branches of a tree.
Closer view of some of the the nymphs.
Wild-haired and wide-eyed, he seems to be straining purposefully as he blows with all his might and sends the colourful autumn leaves diving to the ground, their trajectory realised by vulnerable nymphs gradually falling, bowed down under the force of the blast. The sense of elemental power is accentuated by swirling and drifting cloud in the autumn sky and even puffs of cloud or mist in the diaphanous whorls flowing around and below him.
There is a certain edginess in the portrayal of the nudes, who can also be seen as, apparently, running away, then circling back, and gradually coming to crouch, faces hidden, as if abasing themelves at the tree-trunk which embodies Boreas's strong, sinewy, masculine presence. There is a similarity here to the slender nudes in Henrietta Rae's work, but even more so to the slave paintings of Rae's husband, Ernest Normand, with titles like Bondage (1895). Could this be seen as a comment on the imposition of male dominance?
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Bibliography
Boreas and the Fallen Leaves. Art UK. Web. 8 September 2024.
Created 8 September 2024