Love's Melancholy

About this artwork

Constant Mayer specialized in sentimental scenes of everyday life yet he also displayed a fidelity to nature that harmonized with the detailed landscapes painted by contemporary artists known as the Pre-Raphaelites. The young woman’s black dress, solemn disposition, and wedding ring signal a state of mourning. A church steeple in the background symbolizes her faith and purity, while the vegetation and stonework in the foreground suggest that she stands near her loved one’s grave. The golden ligh...