Deverell, Walter Howell

PAINTER (UNITED STATES OF AMERICA)
BORN 1 Oct 1827, Charlottesville, Virginia - DIED 2 Feb 1854, London: Chelsea
CAUSE OF DEATH bright's disease

Deverell was born of English parents and very good looking. He moved to London with his family when he was two years old. Between 1847 and 1853 he exhibited four paintings at the Royal Academy.

He met Gabriel Dante Rossetti in 1845. They became friends and shared a studio for a few months at Red Lion Square. He was also friendly with pre-raphaelites like Millais and Holman Hunt.

At the time he was deperately looking for a Viola for a picture from "Twelfth Night" he discovered a "miraculous creature" in a milliner's shop in Cranbourn Alley. The girl in question was no other than Lizzy Siddal, who eventually became the wife of Gabriel Dante Rossetti.

Deverell was one of the owners of The Germ (1850), to which he also contributed. Just when he was about to become a member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (replacing Collinson) that body was dismantled. His promising career as a painter ended with early death in 1854.

Works:
"Twelfth Night" (1850, The Forbes Magazine Collection, New York City);
"The Mock Marriage of Orlando and Rosalind" (1853, Birmingham City Museum and Art Gallery).

Related persons
• was a friend of Rossetti, Dante Gabriel
• has a connection with Siddal, Elizabeth

Sources
• Barilli, Renato, Die Präraffaeliten, Manfred Pawlak, Herrsching, 1988


Deveux, James

Published: 01 Jan 2006
Last update: 14 Jun 2021