Gretchen
- Artist: Joanna Mary Wells
- Date: 1861
- Medium: Oil paint on canvas
- Dimensions: support: 730 x 437 mm
- Museum: Tate Britain
- Collection record: Tate Britain website
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About this artwork
This is the “Gretchen” by Joanna Mary Wells, painted in 1861. The oil on canvas captures a quiet, almost prayer‑like moment that alludes to Goethe’s tragic heroine from *Faust*. In the play, Gretchen is seduced, becomes pregnant and later seeks solace in the church. Wells uses this literary reference to give her portrait a poetic depth, a hallmark of early Pre‑Raphaelite “poetic portraits” that blend portraiture with a literary narrative.
The sitter is thought to be the artist’s nursery maid – a common solution for women artists of the time who had limited access to models. Wells herself was pregnant when she began this work, and she died shortly after giving birth to her third child, leaving the canvas unfinished. The unfinished quality adds an intimate, almost living feel to the scene, as if we’re peeking into a moment that was cut short by life’s abrupt turn.
It was presented by Wells’ daughters in 1923, a touching gesture that helped preserve this poignant piece. The painting stands out not just for its visual qualities but also for the story of its creator, her personal hardships, and the literary allusion that makes this portrait resonate across time.
See it in person
Gretchen is in the collection of Tate Britain on Millbank, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
