Mixed Media on canvas, stretched and ready to hang.
Signed on the front.
As always my art is often inspired by a poem from one of my many poetry books in my studio.
"The Water Lily" depicts the haunting apparition of a young wife's deceased child, beckoning her to a fantastical water lily pool. The woman, consumed by grief, attempts to follow the child but is met with a heartbreaking awakening when the lily leaves sink beneath her, symbolizing the unattainable nature of her loss.
Compared to Lawson's other works, the poem shares his focus on the hardships of rural life. However, it differs in its exploration of the supernatural and the profound impact of grief. The dreamlike imagery and ethereal child evoke a sense of otherworldly longing and the desperation of a mother's love.
The poem resonates with the time period's fascination with spiritualism and the Victorian obsession with child mortality. It captures the emotional turmoil and spiritual yearning of a bereaved parent, offering a poignant glimpse into the enduring power of love and the complexities of loss.
'A lonely young wife
In her dreaming discerns
A lily-decked pool
With a border of ferns,
And a beautiful child,
With butterfly wings,
Trips down to the edge of the water and sings:
‘Come, mamma! come!
‘Quick! follow me—
‘Step out on the leaves of the water-lily!’
And the lonely young wife,
Her heart beating wild,
Cries, ‘Wait till I come,
‘Till I reach you, my child!’
But the beautiful child
With butterfly wings
Steps out on the leaves of the lily and sings:
‘Come, mamma! come!
‘Quick! follow me!
‘And step on the leaves of the water-lily!
And the wife in her dreaming
Steps out on the stream,
But the lily leaves sink
And she wakes from her dream.
Ah, the waking is sad,
For the tears that it brings,
And she knows ’tis her dead baby’s spirit that sings:
‘Come, mamma! come!
‘Quick! follow me!
‘Step out on the leaves of the water-lily!’
Henry Lawson