Hidden Burne-Jones
Leighton House Museum, 12 Holland Park Road, London W14, until 27 January
It’s always a pleasure to visit Lord Leighton’s house and imagine oneself in a more spacious era, venturing into the artists’ quarter of Kensington and paying a call on one of the most popular artists of the Victorian period. The remarkable architecture of the house with its famous Arab Hall always deserves another look, though the exhibitions mounted in the upstairs gallery are becoming an increasing draw for the art public. Last year it was Leighton’s drawings, now brilliantly followed up by a show of little-known Burne-Jones drawings from Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.
Edward Burne-Jones (1833–98) was friendly with Leighton and used to attend musical evenings at Leighton House. According to Walter Crane, he and Burne-Jones were to have been responsible for the decoration of the dome of the Arab Hall, but this never transpired.
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