John Everett Millais: Victorian Artist of Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood

Isabela
John Everett Millais, Public domain,
via Wikimedia Commons
Introduction

John Everett Millais (1829–1896) was one of the most gifted and influential figures of the Victorian era. As a co-founder of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, he challenged the academic conventions of British art and helped redefine modern painting. 

Known for his luminous color, meticulous naturalism, and emotional depth, Millais produced some of the most iconic canvases of the 19th century.

This essay examines five of his most important works, placing them within the broader context of his artistic career. It also draws comparisons with two similar artists, explores his color palette and themes, outlines where his works can be found today, and considers their valuation in the art market.

The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood

Founded in 1848 by Millais, William Holman Hunt, and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood sought to revitalize art by rejecting the formulaic traditions of the Royal Academy. They admired early Renaissance painters ("before Raphael") for their clarity, detail, and sincerity.

Millais quickly established himself as the most technically accomplished member of the group. His mastery of paint, especially his ability to capture nature with precision and luminosity, gave him a leading role in articulating the Brotherhood’s ideals.

Five Key Paintings

1. Ophelia (1851–52)

Ophelia
John Everett Millais, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Perhaps Millais’s most famous work, Ophelia depicts Shakespeare’s tragic heroine drifting to her death among flowers in a stream. 

The painting epitomizes Pre-Raphaelite ideals: hyper-detailed rendering of flora, brilliant colors, and intense emotional resonance.

Millais famously painted the background directly from life along the banks of the Hogsmill River in Surrey. 

Every plant and flower has symbolic meaning, echoing Shakespeare’s text. The model, Elizabeth Siddal, posed in a bathtub to achieve the floating figure, underscoring Millais’s relentless pursuit of realism.

Ophelia remains a cornerstone of Victorian art, beloved for its beauty yet unsettling in its theme of youthful death.

Jesus in his parents' house (The Carpenter's Workshop)
John Everett Millais, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
2. Christ in the House of His Parents (1849–50)

This early Pre-Raphaelite work shocked Victorian audiences. The painting shows the Holy Family in a humble carpenter’s shop, with symbolic references to Christ’s future Passion—a wounded hand foreshadows the Crucifixion.

Critics derided the painting as overly realistic, even vulgar, for its depiction of dirt, rough carpentry, and unidealized figures. Yet today, it is praised for its boldness and meticulous naturalism. Millais’s attention to symbolic detail, from the wood shavings to the tools of Joseph’s trade, reflects the Brotherhood’s emphasis on “truth to nature.”

Mariana  1851
John Everett Millais, Public domain,
via Wikimedia Commons
3. Mariana (1851)

John Everett Millais's 1851 painting, Mariana, draws its inspiration from a character in Shakespeare’s play Measure for Measure. 

The scene depicts a young woman, Mariana, at her embroidery table, captured in a moment of weary resignation. She stretches her back, her posture communicating a profound sense of isolation and languor. 

The setting reinforces these themes; a stained-glass window in the background casts a religious, yet isolating light, while fallen autumn leaves scattered on the floor and windowsill symbolize the passage of time and fading hope. 

 Millais's masterful use of color is a key feature of the work, with a brilliant palette of deep blues, glowing reds, and vibrant greens saturating the canvas to create a stunning, jewel-like effect. This exquisite aesthetic detail heightens the emotional weight of the scene, transforming a literary subject into a deeply human portrayal of psychological loneliness and longing, rendered with both tenderness and profound melancholy.

The Blind Girl
John Everett Millais, Public domain,
via Wikimedia Commons
4. The Blind Girl (1856)

In John Everett Millais's poignant double-figure painting, the artist masterfully captures a moment of quiet repose. The scene unfolds after a rainstorm, with two itinerant girls—likely sisters—taking shelter by a verdant hedgerow. 

The younger girl, whose eyes are closed, is blind, and she is turned toward her companion, who looks out at the sky. A brilliant rainbow arches across the sky, a symbol of hope and divine promise, creating a striking contrast between the sensory world the viewer experiences and the darkness the blind girl inhabits. 

The work is rich with themes of vision, perception, and exclusion, prompting us to consider how we experience the world. Millais's signature naturalism is on full display; he renders the details of the wet grass, vibrant wildflowers, and the girls’ worn clothing with an almost photographic precision. 
This blend of profound social commentary and breathtaking aesthetic beauty has cemented the painting's legacy as one of Millais's most enduring and moving masterpieces.

The Boyhood of Raleigh, 1871
John Everett Millais, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
5. The Boyhood of Raleigh (1870)

This later work reflects Millais’s shift from Pre-Raphaelite intricacy toward broader brushwork and narrative clarity. 

It shows a young Walter Raleigh listening to the stories of a sailor, foreshadowing his destiny as an explorer.

The painting appealed to Victorian ideals of empire, adventure, and destiny. 

Its restrained color palette, with earthy tones and a seascape background, demonstrates Millais’s maturity as a painter who adapted to changing tastes while retaining narrative strength.

Comparisons with Other Artists

The Annunciation 1850
Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Public domain,
via Wikimedia Commons

A. Dante Gabriel Rossetti

Dante Gabriel Rossetti and John Everett Millais, while co-founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, developed distinctly different artistic approaches. Rossetti's work is marked by a poetic intensity and sensuality, often creating a dreamlike atmosphere that feels both personal and symbolic. 

His figures, frequently modeled by his muse Elizabeth Siddal, possess exaggerated features—like elongated necks and flowing hair—and exist within a flattened, decorative space that owes more to medieval art than to direct observation. 

This stylistic choice underscores a preference for symbolic mysticism and emotional depth over physical reality. 

In contrast, Millais's artistry is defined by its unwavering commitment to clarity, realism, and naturalism. He meticulously rendered every detail of his subjects, from the textures of clothing to the individual blades of grass, grounding his figures and landscapes firmly in the observed world. 

This technical rigor and a focus on verisimilitude gave his paintings a broader public appeal and made his work more accessible. This fundamental difference—Rossetti's esoteric, mystical symbolism versus Millais's grounded, empirical realism—highlights the diverse artistic currents within the Pre-Raphaelite movement itself and clarifies their unique contributions to Victorian art.

The Ladies Waldegrave
Joshua Reynolds, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
B. Sir Joshua Reynolds

As the leading academic painter of the previous century, Reynolds provides a historical counterpoint. 

Reynolds idealized his subjects with classical poses and soft, generalized brushwork. 

Millais directly rejected these ideals, embracing sharp outlines, unvarnished realism, and vibrant, unblended color.

Yet both shared a commitment to elevating British art, albeit through radically different means. Reynolds sought timeless grandeur, while Millais sought truth to nature. Their contrast illuminates the revolutionary force of Pre-Raphaelitism.

Color Palette and Technique

Millais’s palette evolved over his career:

  • Early Pre-Raphaelite period: Bright, jewel-like tones (lapis blues, scarlets, emerald greens) applied with painstaking detail. Surfaces are luminous, with colors placed side by side rather than blended, enhancing vibrancy.

  • Mid-career: Softer harmonies emerge, with greater atmospheric subtlety, as in The Blind Girl.

  • Later works: Broader brushwork, looser paint handling, and earthier palettes reflect his transition toward a more mainstream Victorian style.

His technique was distinguished by obsessive attention to detail, often painting directly from nature. Millais’s ability to capture foliage, water, and fabric textures with photographic precision astonished his contemporaries.

Subjects and Themes

Recurring themes in Millais’s work include:

  1. Literary subjects: Shakespeare, Tennyson, and the Bible provided narrative foundations.

  2. Portraiture: Later in life, Millais became a sought-after society portraitist.

  3. Nature: Landscapes, flora, and symbolic vegetation play a central role in his compositions.

  4. Childhood and innocence: Works like The Boyhood of Raleigh and numerous portraits of children reflect Victorian sentimentality.

  5. Religion and morality: Early works emphasize spiritual symbolism and human struggle.

Display Locations

Millais’s works are widely distributed across British national collections, regional museums, and private holdings. His masterpieces, such as Ophelia, Mariana, and Christ in the House of His Parents, are housed in major galleries in London, where they remain highlights of Victorian art. Other works, including The Boyhood of Raleigh and The Blind Girl, are held in prominent UK collections.

Because Millais was celebrated during his lifetime, his paintings were acquired by leading institutions and continue to anchor exhibitions on Victorian art and the Pre-Raphaelites.

Valuations and the Art Market

Auction Performance

Millais’s works command strong valuations in the international art market. Prices vary significantly depending on subject, size, and provenance. Major Pre-Raphaelite subjects such as Ophelia are considered priceless cultural treasures and remain in public collections. Portraits and landscapes in private circulation often achieve six- and seven-figure sums at auction.

Value Drivers

  • Subject matter: Literary and symbolic works fetch the highest prices.

  • Condition: Paintings with minimal restoration or fading retain greater value.

  • Provenance: Works with royal or notable ownership histories command premiums.

  • Scale and finish: Fully finished exhibition pieces are more sought-after than sketches.

Collector Appeal

Millais’s combination of technical brilliance, narrative content, and historical importance ensures continued desirability. His works remain cornerstones of Victorian collections, appealing to institutions and private collectors alike.

Legacy

John Everett Millais’s contribution to art history cannot be overstated. From the revolutionary precision of Ophelia to the iconic national sentiment of The Boyhood of Raleigh, his works encapsulate the breadth of Victorian artistic ambition.

While he eventually moved away from strict Pre-Raphaelite technique, his legacy lies in his ability to merge naturalism with emotion, producing paintings that remain as captivating today as they were controversial in the 19th century.

Conclusion

Millais’s art reflects the tension between tradition and innovation in Victorian Britain. His five key works—Ophelia, Christ in the House of His Parents, Mariana, The Blind Girl, and The Boyhood of Raleigh—illustrate his range from radical Pre-Raphaelite detail to mature narrative clarity.

Through comparisons with Rossetti and Reynolds, we see the distinctiveness of Millais’s vision: simultaneously revolutionary and accessible. His color palette, subjects, and themes embody the essence of Pre-Raphaelitism while also adapting to broader Victorian tastes.

Today, Millais’s works remain treasured in public collections and highly valued in the art market, ensuring his place as one of Britain’s most celebrated painters.

Keywords: John Everett Millais, Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, Victorian art, Ophelia, The Blind Girl, Christ in the House of His Parents, Mariana, The Boyhood of Raleigh, Pre-Raphaelite color palette, Victorian painting valuations, Millais at auction