In an Artist’s Studio

Christina Rossetti
One face looks out from all his canvases,

One selfsame figure sits or walks or leans:

We found her hidden just behind those screens,

That mirror gave back all her loveliness.

A queen in opal or in ruby dress,

A nameless girl in freshest summer-greens,

A saint, an angel — every canvas means

The same one meaning, neither more or less.

He feeds upon her face by day and night,

And she with true kind eyes looks back on him,

Fair as the moon and joyful as the light:

Not wan with waiting, not with sorrow dim;

Not as she is, but was when hope shone bright;

Not as she is, but as she fills his dream.

‘In an Artist’s Studio‘ by Christina Rossetti is a standard Italian or Petrarchan sonnet that is made up
of fourteen lines and can be separated into one set of eight lines, called an octave, and one set of six
lines, called a sestet. The first collection of lines presents the basis of the story or problem, and the
final six provide a conclusion or answer.

In this particular instance, the first part of the poem describes the visual depiction of the artist’s
obsession over a woman, while the second set shows how he has been consumed mentally by her
image and by a happier time in his life.

Summary
‘In an Artist’s Studio‘ by Christina Rossetti describes one artist’s obsession over a particular woman
and the way that her face absorbs his every thought. The poem begins with the speaker describing
what the inside of the studio looks like. All around the room are innumerable canvases, each bearing
the face of a particular female model. She is portrayed in every possible variation and shown as a
“queen, “saint,” and common girl. No one way that the painter paints her is any more important than
another. She is to him all things at the same time.
The artist is completely obsessed with this unknown woman. Her face serves as sustenance for his
soul, and he stares endlessly at her image. Her painted portraits stare right back at him as if she, too,
is obsessing over him. The speaker makes clear that these images of the girl are not true to life. They
are representations of how he sees her in his dreams. These happy moments are from another time
that has long since passed but that the artist cannot let go.

Analysis of In an Artist’s Studio

One selfsame figure sits or walks or leans:

We found her hidden just behind those screens,

That mirror gave back all her loveliness.”

The speaker of ‘In an Artist’s Studio‘ begins the poem by describing what the inside of an artist’s
studio looks like. From where she is standing, she can look around and take in each canvas that she
sees, as well as the way the light falls and the obsession that must be inherent in his practice. While
looking around, there is one element of the painter’s art that sticks out most to her: the presence of
a single face, repeated endlessly throughout his studio. It is clear that this artist does not spend time
painting portraits of anyone other than “her.” She, the subject of his art, “looks out from all his
canvases.” The sitter appears in different forms throughout the work, but she is always “One
selfsame figure,” whether she is “sit[ting], walk[ing] or lean[ing].” While searching for the repeating
female figure, the speaker finds her “hidden” throughout different canvases; each time she is
spotted, she is lovely.

Lines 5-8
“A queen in opal or in ruby dress,

A nameless girl in freshest summer-greens,

A saint, an angel — every canvas means

The same one meaning, neither more or less.”

The artist is able to render her differently each time he paints, such as, “A queen in opal or in ruby
dress.” He has painted her elegantly, like royalty, a number of times. She is shown in red and white
dresses.

Additionally, the artist has shown her as a “nameless girl,” a common girl, “in freshest summer
greens,” and as an “angel” and “saint.” It is clear that the artist finds every type of inspiration in his
model and is able to perceive her in every conceivable form. She is his muse and obsession.
In the final line of this section, the speaker states that no form in which he has portrayed her, “saint,”
“queen,” or peasant girl, is any more important or meaningful than any other. He would love her in
whatever form she took.

Lines 9-14
“He feeds upon her face by day and night,

And she with true kind eyes looks back on him,

Fair as the moon and joyful as the light:

Not wan with waiting, not with sorrow dim;

Not as she is, but was when hope shone bright;

Not as she is, but as she fills his dream.”

In the concluding lines of ‘In an Artist’s Studio‘, the speaker makes clear to the reader how obsessed
and dependent this artist has become on his muse. She is more than just a passing love or beautiful
face; he actually takes sustenance from her presence and time spent admiring her. The artist “feeds
upon her face” at every hour of the day and night, and she is always there, looking out from the
paintings with “true kind eyes.” It is as if she is looking back at him, admiring him in kind.

She is, the speaker states, “Fair as the moon and joyful as the light.” She is all things and seems to be
more important to the speaker than life itself. Although time may pass in the artist’s life, her face and
beauty will never wan as she is “waiting” around in his studio. His paintings will never be inflicted
with “sorrow” so that her face “dim[s].” She will remain immortalized, just as he sees her, for all time.

It is important to distinguish, in the last lines of the poem, the way that the artists perceive her from
the way she actually is. The speaker makes this separation clear as she states that the way that the
artist portrayed her is not the way that she is now. She is no longer filled with “hope” that shines
“bright.” She is not painted “as she is, but as she fills his dreams.” The artist is longing for a time
when things were the way they used to be, not as they are now, and the paintings are a reminder of
that time.