Sir Frank Dicksee – The Artistic Height of Victoriana England

Sir Frank Bernard Dicksee was an English artist, born in London on November 27th 1853: Therefore, an artist creating art works around the time of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood – And although not officially a member of this covert group, his affinity with dramatic historical legends and notable artistic style would not exclude him. Portraiture was Dicksee’s most noted skill: He was famous for his ability to capture the outer and inner beauty of the most polished, fashionable women and the socialites of the day: And because of this, he became one of the few artists to actually enjoy notoriety as well as financial success during his own era.

Sir Frank Dicksee was part of a notable artistic family which began with his father Thomas Francis Dicksee (1819–1895).Like his son, Thomas Dicksee was renowned for his picturesque portraiture: As well as his idealized scenes inspired by English legend and playwrights: Shakespearean tales being his most favored genre. Thomas Dicksee exhibited at the Royal Academy throughout his artistic life and taught Frank as well as his brother John and sister Margaret to paint from a young age: All of whom became professional painters achieving notable popularity.

Like many of his contemporaries, early on in his career Dicksee produced illustrations for books for the most. A star student, Frank Dicksee was accepted to study at the Royal Academy in 1870: He became an official member in 1891, President in 1924 and received a Knighthood one year later in 1925. Frank Dicksee then went on to become part of the Royal Victorian Order in 1927 – A great honor. Indeed, the artistic life of Frank Dicksee was an honored and prolific one.

Frank Dicksee initially earned his reputation as a gifted and skilled painter with Harmony: An oil painting he created and exhibited at The Royal Academy in 1877: Which is owned by the Tate Gallery in London today. This oil painting depicting a young woman playing the piano in a medieval setting clearly denotes the artist’s awareness of the Pre- Raphaelite art works. Curiously, while women invariably played the leading role within many of this artist’s compositions – Including Shakespearean characters such as Ophelia, Ariel, Juliet and Miranda - Dicksee remained a bachelor all his life.

The oil painting Romeo and Juliet was created in 1884, when Frank Dicksee was thirty-one years old. This tender scene captures the moment when the two star-cross'd lovers part on their wedding night – Poignant as this would be their last time together. When it was initially exhibited this Tomeo and Juliet received a somewhat mixed reception. Today it is among his most revered and well known works and part of the permanent collection at the Southampton City Art Gallery in England.

Funeral of a Viking is another of Dicksee’s most well known works. It was created in 1893 and like Romeo and Juliet; it received a mixed reception from the critics. The scene is dramatic with the Viking boat ceremoniously set alight; it and the hero’s body being set out to sea upon a rising tide: its journey set to end in Valhalla – Where he would take his place in Odin’s celebrated Hall of the Slain. Nordic mythology gained interest during the Victorian era: And in this particular year a Viking ship burial had been excavated in Gokstad, Norway. Even so, it was far from run of the mill subject matter – To which Funeral of a Viking was a bold move on Dicksee’s behalf.

The colors of Frank Dicksee’s work tantamount to a rich and fluid arrangement of tones and tints which come together to reveal a highly unique mix of artistic influences. While his oil paintings often received an equally unique mix of critical acclaim his art works do personify the artistic ideals of Victorian England: Indeed, as the president of the Royal Academy and toward the end of his life, Frank Dicksee publically condemned all the new artistic movements which had emerged at the beginning of the twentieth century. Sir Frank Dicksee died in 1928 leaving behind a varied body of oil paintings which covered a wide range of genres. Herbert Thomas, his brother being the only sibling to outlive him; dying in 1942.

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