Pyle and the Pre-Raphaelites

Pyle and the Pre-Raphaelites brings together two of the Museum’s signature collections: the founding collection of work by American illustrator Howard Pyle and Samuel Bancroft’s collection of British Pre-Raphaelite art. There has long been speculation on whether there was a relationship between Pyle and Bancroft, and whether the artist influenced the collector’s interests or vice versa. Beyond knowing that the men were relatives by marriage, little was known about the extent to which they were connected. New research reveals the men were far more intertwined than previously recognized and that Pyle was inspired by the Pre-Raphaelites before Bancroft began acquiring their work in 1890.

This exhibition will highlight Pyle’s illustrations for stories set in the Medieval and Early Renaissance eras, including Arthurian tales of the Knights of the Round Table. These will be displayed alongside works by Pre-Raphaelite artists and their followers, including Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Edward Burne-Jones, and William Morris. These groupings will articulate the extent to which Pyle was inspired by Pre-Raphaelite compositions he encountered in his early career as well as in Bancroft’s collection. Additionally, this show will demonstrate how the artist’s exposure to original works of Pre-Raphaelite art shaped the birth and flourishing of American illustration.

Pyle and the Pre-Raphaelites is curated by Katherine Feldkamp, Curatorial Associate.

Water Willow, 1871. Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828–1882). Oil on canvas, glued onto wood panel, 13 × 10 1/2 in. Delaware Art Museum, Samuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935.

A Damsel Bringeth Aid unto Sir Ewaine and decorated initial A with title and design, 1907. Howard Pyle (1853–1911). Ink on illustration board, 14 × 10 15/16 in. Delaware Art Museum, Museum Purchase, 1920.

So for a Heart-beat She Saw Him, 1905. Howard Pyle (1853–1911). Oil on canvas, 24 1/8 × 16 1/8 in. Delaware Art Museum, Gayle and Alene Hoskins Endowment Fund, 1983.

Illustration for The Princess on the Glass Hill; The Prince kills the dragon, c. 1888. Howard Pyle (1853–1911). Ink on illustration board, 13 × 12 5/16 in. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of George Callery, 1963.

Cupid's Hunting Fields, 1880. Edward Burne-Jones (1833–1898). Oil and gold paint on gesso relief on mahogany panel, 39 1/4 x 30 1/8 in. Delaware Art Museum, Purchased in memory of Betty Bancroft, 1977.

Illustration for The Three Fortunes; A great, ugly, poisonous snake crept out of a hole in the wall, 1888. Howard Pyle (1853–1911). Ink on illustration board, 12 15/16 × 11 7/8 in. Delaware Art Museum, Museum Purchase, 1912.

Study for the Woodblock for the Moxon Tennyson of Lancelot and the Lady of Shalott, 1856-1857. Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828–1882). Brown ink on paper, 4 1/16 x 3 1/2 in. Delaware Art Museum, Samuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935.

Illustration for Otto of the Silver Hand; Away they rode with clashing hoofs and ringing armor, 1893. Howard Pyle (1853–1911). Ink on paper, 9 x 6 ½ in. Delaware Art Museum Helen Farr Sloan Library & Archives, Pyle Library.

Headpiece for Love and Death, 1897. Howard Pyle (1853–1911). Ink on illustration board, 5 9/16 × 12 5/8 in. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of Willard S. Morse, 1923.

Until Her Death, 1862. Frederick Sandys (1829–1904). Wood engraving, 4 1/4 × 5 3/16 in. Delaware Art Museum, Samuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935.

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Organizers & Sponsors

This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.