John William Waterhouse was born in Rome to British parents on April
6, 1849. He lived there for the first 6 years of his life, absorbing
the character of Italian culture until his family's return to England.
Waterhouse, known to his family as 'Nino', was an avid scholar of
ancient history during his youth, and unlike most members of the Royal
Academy his only tutorage in art was from his father.
"A Mermaid" of 1901 was praised by the "Art Journal", whose critics
wrote: "The whistful-sad look of this fair mermaid, seated in her
rock-bound home, combing the dull-red hair ere she studs it with
pearls that lie in the iridescent shell, is potent in suggestion. It
tells of human longings never to be satisfied... The chill of the sea
lies over her heart; the endless murmur of waters is a poor substitute
for the sound of human voices; never can this beautiful creature,
troubled with emotion, experience on the one hand unawakened repose,
on the other the joys of womanhood.".
