Leighton House Museum

The Leighton House Museum is the former house of Frederic, Lord Leighton, an English painter and sculptor. He arranged his Victorian home as if it were a museum, in order to display his works to those worthy enough of entrance. The house was amazing; full of paintings and sculptures by Leighton and his fellow artists. Upon entrance, there are beautiful paintings, sculptures, and amazingly colored tiles in all directions. It is somewhat overwhelming to see everything, but when looking at each piece individually, it is really beautiful.

Cultural Borrowing and Fusion
This museum is definitely a symbol of cultural borrowing and fusion. Lord Leighton, although born in England, traveled all over the world to places including many places in the Middle East. He even spoke German, French, and Italian. The most evident part of cultural fusion in the house is in the Arab Hall, the extension of the house. Leighton added this extension onto the house to display all of the tiles that he collected during his visits to the Middle East. The Hall itself was inspired by La Zisa, a palace Lord Leighton saw while in Palermo, Sicily. These tiles along with much of the architecture in the house really show how Leighton borrowed from the many cultures that he experienced in his lifetime.

Artistic Expression
Leighton preferred to paint subject matter that was connected to ancient Greek and Roman mythology. One of his works that really caught my attention was Clytie, a figure of Greek Mythology. This work expressed his passion and interest for mythology while displaying his artistic skills. He very successfully portrays Clytie's feelings; just by looking at her you can understand her emotions. Leighton was successful with his color choices for this piece, using beautiful oranges and reds to portray Apollo.

The Story of Clytie

Picture from Liverpool Museum's website

Clytie, a beautiful young woman, falls in love with Apollo the sun god but is rejected by him. She goes to a remote spot and remains there, neither eating nor drinking, receiving her only nourishment from her tears. Day after day she watches her former lover drive his chariot from east to west across the sky. Eventually she becomes rooted to the ground, her limbs and body turn into the stem of a plant and her face becomes a sunflower which forever after follows Apollo as he makes his daily journey across the sky.






Reflection 
In short, this museum really made me want to travel the world. I would love to experience a bunch of different cultures and be able to incorporate them into my life, as Lord Leighton did in his artwork and house.