What is Pre-Raphaelite art?
The Pre-Raphaelites began as an act of rebellion in 1848, proclaiming art of the Renaissance and after as “sloshy,” preferring the crisp lines and vibrant color of earlier, medieval paintings.
But by the early 20th century, and particularly the end of World War I, the drama and emotional exuberance of the Pre-Raphaelites found no traction in the European zeitgeist.
“After the carnage, so many people in Europe losing the cream of the male generation, basically killed, people thought this idealized world which the Victorians inhabited: ‘What was it about?’” Webber said during an interview before his appearance at the museum.
“I mean, it was worthless,” he said.
There are tales of Pre-Raphaelite masterpieces being thrown away in demolition dumpsters, as well as dealers buying the paintings for the value of their frames.
Then came Webber, who had not yet come into his successes in musical theater with shows like “Jesus Christ Superstar,” “The Phantom of the Opera,” “Evita” and “Cats.” In the 1960s, he was a struggling composer with little money, but possessed an eye for artwork that nobody else wanted.
“Like all kids, you’re a bit of a rebel,” he said. “So, with the art establishment saying that Victorian art was rubbish, there was a group of us who thought, ‘No, there was some wonderful architecture. There are some wonderful artists.’”
In the 1960s, the tide was beginning to turn in England for all things Victorian. In 1961, the ornately Victorian 1837 Euston train station in London was demolished and replaced with a modern building that is widely hated.
Writing in The Times in 2007, Richard Morrison described Euston’s design as giving “the impression of having been scribbled on the back of a soiled paper bag by a thuggish android with a grudge against humanity and a vampiric loathing of sunlight.”
The controversy spurred a renewed interest in Victorian preservation and art. In the 1960s, Webber was joined by another future music icon, Jimmy Page, in a passion for Pre-Raphaelite paintings.
“It would be fair to say that I was pretty intoxicated with the whole movement,” the Led Zeppelin guitarist told Tate in 2019.
