Julia Margaret Cameron
, British, 1815-1879
Title
Browning's Sordello (Henry John Stedman Cotton and Mary Ryan)Date1867
MediumAlbumen print
Dimensions
Image: 33.3 x 25.7 cm
Mount: 61 x 50.8 cm
Credit LinePurchased, 2019
Object numberNGI.2019.330
DescriptionJulia Margaret Cameron converted a chicken coop into a studio and a coal bin into a darkroom, on her property on the Isle of Wight, and began making portraits. Especially noteworthy from this period are Cameron's sensitive renderings of female beauty, as in her portraits of the actress Ellen Terry, her niece Julia Jackson and her Irish maid Mary Ryan.At the age of 10, Mary Ryan was saved from a life of begging, along with her mother. Touched by Mary's grace, Cameron took on her upbringing beside her own children, and in return Mary became a loyal maid and muse for the photographer, before marrying Sir Henry Stedman Cotton, of the Indian Civil Service, who fell in love with a portrait of Mary by Cameron. They often posed for Cameron; on their wedding day, she photographed them, in costume, as Romeo and Juliet.
The inspiration for this particular portrait comes from Sordello, a narrative poem by Robert Browning (1840). Sordello was an Italian poet/warrior of the early 13th century. Cameron often sought inspiration for her photographs by exploring other art forms, such as painting, philosophy and poetry.
Inscriptionon verso (in pencil): Sir Henry Cotton / (Mary Ryan)
ProvenanceCollection of Sir Henry John Stedman and Mary (Ryan) Cotton; by descent to the previous owner; purchased, Sotheby’s, New York, Classic Photographs Sale, 3 October 2019, lot 176 Exhibition HistoryNew Perspectives. Acquisitions 2011 - 2020, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 11 May - 2 August 2021