Flaming June by Frederic Leighton Postcard

Flaming June by Frederic Leighton, oil on canvas 1895, is a painting of a draped female figure in repose, reclining in an elegant marble interior, the natural light of the setting sun illuminating the scene in a range of warm, brilliant colours like liquid gold. The elegant, classical figure and smooth contours evoke the nymphs and draped figures of the sculpture of classical Greece, while the inclusion of the toxic Oleander plant above provides a Romantic reminder of the link between sleep and death. Flaming June is the artist’s most famous painting among many that are regaining recognition after a long period of neglect of art of the Victorian era. Frederic Leighton (1830 - 1896) was an English painter and sculptor associated with the British Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood of artists. After studying in London and on the continent of Europe, and living for a time in Paris, Leighton settled in London where he began producing works based on classical, Biblical and historical subject matter. Leighton was an associate and President of the Royal Academy who helped to spark a renewal of British sculpture, and received the French Legion of Honour. The Pre-Raphaelite movement partook of the brilliant, jewel-like colours, intricate detail and compositional styles of Quattrocento Renaissance art, which Leighton infused with influences from the schools of Romanticism and Realism. Leighton died as the only artist to receive a peerage, and today his house stands as a museum in London.