John Everett Millais

Ophelia, 1851-2

Millais was one of the Pre-Raphaelites. I could have included many other examples of their work, but I stuck with this one because Millais's my favourite, and I especially love the combination of romanticism and what I would call the realist technique. There's so much I could say about the Pre-Raphaelites, but I won't - this painting will have to do. Go and look them up in an encyclopedia - or better yet, read a book on the subject. And while you're at it, read Hamlet, to get an idea of what this painting's about.