La Pia de' Tolomei, Dante Gabriel Rossetti

Exhibition Label:
"Forms of Thought," Mar-2014, Kris Ercums
La Pia is the last major painting completed by Rossetti. It portrays a character from the epic 14th-century poem, The Divine Comedy, Purgatory by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri (circa 1265-1321). According to the poem, a woman named La Pia married an Italian magistrate who kept her in a castle in the malaria-infested swamps of Maremma where she died under mysterious circumstances. In this painting, Rossetti captures the lonely and contemplative young woman toying with her wedding ring. In the foreground, the sundial suggests the passage of time, while old love letters from her husband underscore La Pia’s marital ties.
Rossetti’s model for painting and many others was Jane Burden Morris (1839-1914), who was married to Rossetti’s fellow artist and good friend, William Morris. Rossetti had a passionate affair with Jane and hoped in vain that she would leave her husband. The subject of a wife imprisoned by her husband carried great personal meaning for Rossetti.

Archive Label 2001:
La Pia, the last major canvas completed by Rossetti, depicts one of the characters of the thirteenth to fourteenth century Italian poet Dante Alighieri from his epic poem The Divine Comedy, Purgatory. The relevant part of this poem is inscribed on this, the original frame, designed by Rossetti himself.

La Pia, of the Sienese family Tolommei, married a magistrate from Maremma. He kept her, supposedly out of jealousy, in a castle on the malaria-infested swamps of Maremma. She died there under mysterious circumstances. She is seen here fingering her wedding ring in sadness and regret. The old letters from her husband and the sundial in the fore-ground, a symbol of change, explicate the narrative, the rosary and devotional book refer to her name, which means "the pious one."

The model for this and many other Rossetti paintings was Jane Burden Morris. Rossetti favored this type of model with her thick, dark hair, brooding eyes, heavy neck and plump, curling mouth. The heavy-hearted theme of La Pia was especially poignant for Rossetti, who was in love with Jane Morris even though she was married to a fellow artist and good friend, William Morris.

Archive Label:
La Pia, the last major canvas completed by Rossetti, depicts one of the characters from the epic fourteenth-century poem, The Divine Comedy, Purgatory, by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri. Passages from this poem that relate directly to the painting are inscribed on the frame, which Rossetti designed himself.

La Pia married an Italian magistrate who kept her, supposedly out of jealousy, in a castle in the malaria-infeseed swamps of Maremma. She died there under mysterious circumstances. Rossetti shows a lonely and contemplatve La Pia toying with her wedding rings. In the foreground, the sundial suggests the passage of time, while old love letters from her husband underscore La Pia's marital ties. The rosary and devotional book refer to her name, which means "the pious one."

Rossetti's model for this and many other paintings was Jane Burden Morris, who was married to Rossetti's fellow artist and good friend, William Morris. Rossetti had a passionate affair with Jane, and hoped in vain that she would leave William for him. Therefore, La Pia's subject of a wife imprisioned by her husband carried much personal meaning for Rossetti.