Did John Everett Millais Almost Kill His 'Ophelia' Model?

During the Victorian era, posing as a muse for a painter was not without risk. Art history has retained the dramatic anecdote that Elizabeth Siddall, model for John Everett Millais's 'Ophelia' (1829-1896), caught a serious illness after posing for hours in a bathtub filled with cold water. This legend, often repeated, raises questions about the working conditions of models in the 19th century and the truth behind the myth.

The painting, executed between 1851 and 1852, depicts Ophelia floating in a river, inspired by Shakespeare's play. Millais, a founding member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, wanted a realistic rendering of nature. For the floating body, he installed a bathtub in his studio, filled with water kept warm by lamps. Elizabeth Siddall, then in her twenties, posed for long sessions. According to the contemporary account, the lamps went out, the water cooled, and Siddall fell ill, contracting pneumonia that nearly proved fatal.

But is this version accurate? Recent research suggests the story has been exaggerated. No contemporary source mentions the incident, and Siddall's fragile health, plagued by digestive issues and opium addiction, is well documented but not directly linked to that session. The legend was likely amplified to feed the romantic myth of the artist and his model, a tragic figure who died in 1862, a few years after marrying Dante Gabriel Rossetti, another Pre-Raphaelite.

Regardless, the anecdote illustrates the often precarious conditions of female models at the time, caught between devotion to art and physical risk. 'Ophelia' remains one of the emblematic masterpieces of Pre-Raphaelitism, displayed at Tate Britain in London, and Siddall, herself an artist, is now recognized.

While the exact story remains uncertain, it continues to fascinate and fuel discussions about artist-model relationships. It also reminds us that behind every painting lie real lives, sometimes fragile beneath the myth.

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Written by the ADM desk based on Beaux Arts Magazine. Read the original article for the full story.