John Ruskin

John Ruskin (February 8, 1819 – January 20, 1900) was an English author, poet and artist, although more famous for his work as art critic and social critic. Ruskin's thinking on art and architecture became the thinking of the Victorian and Edwardian eras.

Life and works

Ruskin was born in London, and was brought up in south London. He was educated at the University of Oxford (Christ Church), where he was awarded a prize for poetry, his earliest interest. It was there that he met Joseph Mallord William Turner, whom he began to defend against critics in an 1836 essay. His Modern Painters series was responsible for the early popularity of the artist as well as the pre-Raphaelite movement.

Related Topics:
London - University of Oxford - Christ Church - Poetry - Joseph Mallord William Turner - Pre-Raphaelite

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He also worked with the artists Rossetti, Millais, Holman Hunt, John Brett, Burne-Jones and John William Inchbold. Millais would in due course marry Effie Gray, who had been unhappily married to Ruskin from 1848 until their marriage was annulled in 1854 on grounds of non-consummation. Ruskin later fell deeply and tragically in love with Rose la Touche. He met her in 1858, when she was only nine years old, proposing to her eight years later and being finally rejected in 1872.

Related Topics:
Rossetti - Millais - Holman Hunt - John Brett - Burne-Jones - John William Inchbold - Effie Gray - 1848 - Annulled - 1854 - Non-consummation - Rose la Touche - 1858 - 1872

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Ruskin taught first at the Working Men's College in London. Ruskin was the first Slade Professor of Art at Oxford, from 1869 to 1879. There he became friendly with Lewis Carroll and was photographed by him. After the parting of Carroll and Alice Liddell, she and her sisters pursued a similar relationship with John Ruskin, as detailed in Ruskin's Praeterita. Ruskin College, Oxford is named after him.

Related Topics:
Working Men's College in London - Slade Professor of Art - Oxford - 1869 - 1879 - Lewis Carroll - Alice Liddell - Ruskin College, Oxford

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Upon the death of his father (who was a wealthy wine merchant), Ruskin declared that it was not possible to be a rich socialist and gave away most of his inheritance. He was friends with Sir Henry Acland. He founded the charity known as the Guild of St George in the 1870s and endowed it with large sums of money as well as a remarkable collection of art. He also gave the money to enable Octavia Hill to begin her practical campaign of housing reform.

Related Topics:
Wine - Socialist - Inheritance - Sir Henry Acland - Guild of St George - Octavia Hill

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In 1878 he wrote a review of a painting by James Whistler in which he accused the painter of "throwing a pot of paint in the face of the public" that led to a famous libel case. Ruskin lost, though the award of damages was only one farthing, and his reputation was tarnished which may have accelerated his mental decline. He suffered from a number of mental breakdowns as well as delirious visions.

Related Topics:
1878 - James Whistler - Farthing

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His later works influenced many Trade Union leaders of the Victorian era. He was also the inspiration for the Arts and Crafts Movement, the founding of the National Trust, the National Art Collections Fund and the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings.

Related Topics:
Trade Union - Victorian era - Arts and Crafts Movement - National Trust - National Art Collections Fund - Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings

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He wrote over 250 works, which tended to connect art history to topics ranging from science, literary criticism, environmental conditions, and mythology. He is well known for his essay on economy Unto This Last, the essay The Nature of Gothic, and the early fantasy novel The King of the Golden River.

Related Topics:
Unto This Last - The King of the Golden River

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A definitive two-volume biography by Tim Hilton appeared as John Ruskin: The Early Years (Yale University Press, 1985) and John Ruskin: The Later Years (Yale University Press, 2000).

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Until 2005, biographies of both J. M. W. Turner and Ruskin had claimed that in 1858 Ruskin burned bundles of erotic paintings and drawings by Turner, in order to protect Turner's posthumous reputation. In 2005, these same works by Turner were discovered in a neglected British archive, proving that Ruskin did not destroy them.

Related Topics:
2005 - J. M. W. Turner - 1858

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Ruskin's influence extends far beyond the field of art history. The author Leo Tolstoy described him as "one of those rare men who think with their heart." Marcel Proust was a Ruskin enthusiast and translated his works into French. Mahatma Gandhi said that Ruskin had been the single greatest influence in his life.

Related Topics:
Leo Tolstoy - Marcel Proust - Mahatma Gandhi

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