Ruskin

JOHN RUSKIN (1819 - 1900)

In 1853 the great art critic and social thinker was at Wallington Hall, which he thought 'the most beautiful place possible', with his wife Effie and the Pre-Raphaelite painter Millais. It was from here that the trio set out on their ill-fated journey to Glenfinlas in the Trossachs, where Millais painted his celebrated picture of Ruskin against a background of striking scenery. The Ruskins' marriage was an unhappy one, and had not been consummated. Millais fell in love with Effie on this trip and few portraits can have been executed in such strained circumstances. Though the divorce was protracted and scandalous, the marriage was at length annulled and Millais and Effie were married in 1855. Queen Victoria refused to receive Effie until Millais requested it as a favour on his deathbed.

Lady Pauline Trevelyan had met Ruskin through her own literary activities - she wrote reviews for the Edinburgh Review and The Scotsman - and introduced him to William Bell Scott (q.v.), but this was not a success. When Bell Scott was painting the new covered court at Wallington with scenes from North East history, Ruskin and the other guests set about decorating the pillars with flower paintings. Ruskin's participation was a failure and he never completed his pillar (much to Bell Scott's delight). A celebrated photograph of 1863 shows Ruskin, Rossetti and Bell Scott together in Chelsea. Ruskin requested Lady Pauline to destroy the photograph, but she declined, and it now hangs in the ante-room to the Trevelyan bedroom.

Among Ruskin's voluminous works was the important Time and Tide, by Weare and Tyne (1867), twenty-five letters elucidating points in his utopian thinking. The letters were addressed to Thomas Dixon (q.v.) the Sunderland working man and are gems of vigour, intelligence and force, the best summary of Ruskin's social and economic ideas.

Ruskin used to visit Violet Hunt's parents at Crook Hall in Durham, and thought the ensemble of river, cathedral and castle at Durham to be one of the seven wonders of the world. He and Effie attended service in the cathedral on Christmas Day 1853.

Myers Literary Guide:	The North-East
JOHN RUSKIN (1819 - 1900) In 1853 the great art critic and social thinker was at Wallington Hall, which he thought 'the most beautiful place possible', with his wife Effie and the Pre-Raphaelite painter Millais. It was from here that the trio set out on their ill-fated journey to Glenfinlas in the Trossachs, where Millais painted his celebrated picture of Ruskin against a background of striking scenery. The Ruskins' marriage was an unhappy one, and had not been consummated. Millais fell in love with Effie on this trip and few portraits can have been executed in such strained circumstances. Though the divorce was protracted and scandalous, the marriage was at length annulled and Millais and Effie were married in 1855. Queen Victoria refused to receive Effie until Millais requested it as a favour on his deathbed. Lady Pauline Trevelyan had met Ruskin through her own literary activities - she wrote reviews for the Edinburgh Review and The Scotsman - and introduced him to William Bell Scott (q.v.), but this was not a success. When Bell Scott was painting the new covered court at Wallington with scenes from North East history, Ruskin and the other guests set about decorating the pillars with flower paintings. Ruskin's participation was a failure and he never completed his pillar (much to Bell Scott's delight). A celebrated photograph of 1863 shows Ruskin, Rossetti and Bell Scott together in Chelsea. Ruskin requested Lady Pauline to destroy the photograph, but she declined, and it now hangs in the ante-room to the Trevelyan bedroom. Among Ruskin's voluminous works was the important Time and Tide, by Weare and Tyne (1867), twenty-five letters elucidating points in his utopian thinking. The letters were addressed to Thomas Dixon (q.v.) the Sunderland working man and are gems of vigour, intelligence and force, the best summary of Ruskin's social and economic ideas. Ruskin used to visit Violet Hunt's parents at Crook Hall in Durham, and thought the ensemble of river, cathedral and castle at Durham to be one of the seven wonders of the world. He and Effie attended service in the cathedral on Christmas Day 1853.
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