Burne-Jones and William Morris

Burne-Jones was a more complex person than his paintings might lead one to believe. He came from an impoverished background and was essentially self-taught as an artist. He went to Exeter College at Oxford University to study theology and there met his lifelong collaborator, William Morris. By the time they left the university, they had decided to ditch the church and take up art as a social vocation instead. Morris was an out-and-out Marxian socialist, but both men were on a mission “to make beauty and art available to all people”, as the art historian Elizabeth Prettejohn notes in the catalogue accompanying the exhibition. Here we have the germ of their commitment to aestheticism and accessibility.

Burne-Jones [left] and William Morris, 1874 (Credit: Frederick Hollyer/ National Portrait Gallery, London)

Burne-Jones and William Morris, Pomona, 1885 (Credit: Private collection)

http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20190204-edward-burne-jones-a-victorian-painter-of-gender-fluidity?

Pomona was the goddess of fruit trees, gardens, and orchards. Unlike many other Roman goddesses and gods, she does not have a Greek counterpart, though she is commonly associated with Demeter. She watches over and protects fruit trees and cares for their cultivation.

Pomona (mythology) - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pomona_(mythology)