Focus on The Shadow of Death and explain the Exhibition.
The painting was a popular success and was widely reproduced as an engraving. The profits made possible the donation of the original to the city of Manchester in 1883. It is now held by the Art Institute of Chicago.Diarist Francis Kilvert describes a visit to see the painting on display in 1874, the year after its completion. His entry for 27 June 1874 reads, "I regret to say that against good advice and wise warning I went to see Holman Hunt's picture of the Shadow of Death. It was a waste of a good shilling. I thought the picture theatrical and detestable and wished I had never seen it."In 1913 Lillian Williamson led an attack on the Manchester Art Gallery. She, Evelyn Manesta and Annie Briggs waited until the gallery was closing and then proceeded to break the glass on many of the most valuable paintings in including the "Shadow of Death", two by John Everett Millais and two by George Frederick Watts. Staff were alerted by the sound of broken glass and the three were apprehended. Williamson was sentenced to three months in prison.
Manchester Art Gallery John Everett Millais Art Institute of Chicago George Frederick Watts Death Chicago Evelyn Manesta Lillian Williamson Francis Kilvert