Waterhouse, J. W.

Waterhouse, J. W. (John William Waterhouse) (b Rome, 6 Apr. 1849; d London, 10 Feb. 1917).
English painter. Early in his career he concentrated on scenes from the Greek and Roman world in a manner similar to that of Alma-Tadema, but in the 1880s he turned to literary themes, painted in a distinctive, dreamily romantic style. In approach he was influenced by the Pre-Raphaelites, but his handling of paint is quite different from theirs—rich and sensuous. His work includes such classic Victorian anthology pieces as The Lady of Shalott (1888, Tate, London) and Hylas and the Nymphs (1896, City AG, Manchester). He enjoyed a great reputation in his lifetime; it declined after his death but revived as part of the general reappraisal of Victorian art in the later 20th century.