Simeon Solomon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Simeon Solomon
Simeon Solomon in Oriental costume, a photograph by David Wilkie Wynfield
Born	9 October 1840 England
Died	14 August 1905 (aged 64)
Nationality	English
Education	Carey's Art Academy (1852) Royal Academy, London
Known for	Painter
Movement	Orientalist

Simeon Solomon (born October 9, 1840 – died August 14, 1905) was a British painter. He was known for his beautiful artworks. Solomon was connected to a group of artists called the Pre-Raphaelites. He often painted scenes from Jewish life.

About Simeon Solomon

Simeon Solomon was born into a well-known Jewish family. He was the youngest of eight children. His father was a merchant named Michael (Meyer) Solomon. His mother was an artist named Catherine (Kate) Levy. Simeon also had two older siblings who were painters: Abraham Solomon and Rebecca Solomon.

Simeon grew up and went to school in London. He started learning to paint from his older brother around 1850. In 1852, he began attending Carey's Art Academy. That same year, his older sister showed her paintings at the Royal Academy.

His Art Training

As a student, Simeon Solomon joined the Royal Academy Schools. There, he met other artists from the Pre-Raphaelite group. He was introduced to them by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. In 1857, he also met the poet Algernon Charles Swinburne and the painter Edward Burne-Jones.

Simeon had his first art show at the Royal Academy in 1858. He continued to show his work there until 1872. His paintings often showed scenes from the Hebrew Bible. He also created genre paintings that showed everyday Jewish life and traditions. He even illustrated a book called Lesbia Brandon in 1865.

Later Life and Legacy

After 1874, Simeon Solomon stopped showing his art in public exhibitions. However, many important people still bought his work. These collectors included Oscar Wilde, John Addington Symonds, and Walter Pater.

Simeon Solomon passed away on August 14, 1905, when he was 64 years old. He was buried at the Jewish Cemetery in Willesden.

You can see examples of his art in several museums today. These include the Victoria and Albert Museum and Leighton House in London. His work is also displayed at Wightwick Manor in Wolverhampton. Special shows of his art have been held at the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and the Ben Uri Gallery.

Art Exhibitions

Simeon Solomon's paintings have been shown in many exhibitions over the years. Here are some of them:

Early Exhibitions (1906-1913)

• Paintings and Drawings by the Late Simeon Solomon, Baillie Gallery, London. December 1905 – January 1906.
• Winter Exhibition of Works of the Old Masters and Deceased Masters of the British School, Royal Academy, London. January–March 1906.
• Exhibition of Jewish Art and Antiquities, Whitechapel Art Gallery. November–December 1906.
• Exeter Museum and Art Gallery. April 1906.
• Jewish Exhibition, Gallery of Ancient and Modern Art, Berlin. 1907.
• Whitechapel Art Gallery. March 1908.
• Franco-British Exhibition, London. July–August 1908.
• Pre-Raphaelite Painters from Collections in Lancashire, Tate Britain, London. July–September 1913.

Mid-Century Exhibitions (1923-1966)

• National Gallery of British Art (Tate). July 1923.
• Jewish Art, Ben Uri Gallery. May 1934.
• Subjects of Jewish Interest, Ben Uri Gallery. December 1946.
• Exhibition of English Watercolours, Leger Galleries. 1964.
• Exhibition of English Watercolours 18th & 19th Century, Leger Galleries. 1965.
• Exhibition of Paintings and Drawings by Simeon Solomon, Durlacher Brothers Gallery, NYC. April–May 1966. This show also moved to Wellesley College.

Recent Exhibitions (1985-2017)

• Acquisitions of the Friends of the Art Museums of Israel, Ben Uri Gallery. March 1985.
• Solomon: A family of painters, Geffrye Museum, London. November–December 1985. This show also went to Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery.
• From Prodigy to Outcast: Simeon Solomon, Pre-Raphaelite Artist, Jewish Museum, London. March–May 2001.
• Solomon Art Exhibition, Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery. April–June 2002.
• Love Revealed: Simeon Solomon and the Pre-Raphaelites, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. October 2005 – January 2006.
• Waking Dreams: The Art of the Pre-Raphaelites from the Delaware Art Museum, Various Locations. March 2005 – July 2007.
• Love Revealed: Simeon Solomon and the Pre-Raphaelites, Museum Villa Stuck, Munich. March–June 2006.
• Love Revealed: Simeon Solomon and the Pre-Raphaelites, Ben Uri Gallery, London. September–November 2006.
• Blake's Shadow: William Blake and his Artistic Legacy, Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester. January–April 2008.
• The Pre-Raphaelites and Italy, Museo d'Arte della città di Ravenna, Italy. February–June 2010.
• The Pre-Raphaelites and Italy, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. September–December 2010.
• Queer British Art 1861-1967, Tate Britain. April–October 2017. This exhibition included seven of Solomon's works.

Gallery

• 

  Babylon Hath Been a Golden Cup, 1859

• Solomon, Simeon - Socrates & Agathodemos.jpg

  Socrates and Agathodemos, c. 1860

• 

  Ruth and Naomi holding the infant Obed, 1860

• 

  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, 1863

• 

  In the Temple of Venus, 1863

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  The Bride, Bridegroom and Sad Love, 1865

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  Coptic Baptismal Procession, 1865

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  Love in Autumn, 1866

• 

  Heliogabalus, High Priest of the Sun, 1866

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  Bacchus, 1867

• 

  Night, 1890

In Literature

The famous writer Oscar Wilde mentioned Simeon Solomon in his long letter, De Profundis. Wilde wrote about his art collection. He listed Solomon's artworks alongside those by other well-known artists like James McNeill Whistler.

See also

• Solomon Joseph Solomon - British painter