#hermia

Hermia and Lysander, A Midsummer Night's Dream ― by John Simmons

A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)

from here

Part 1

Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) “Are you sure that we are awake?” Helena, Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius Midsummer night's dream by William Shakespeare (1908) Source

In the present work Simmons creates an entire civilization of varying "species" of fairies: some fly with fluttering, gossamer wings, and others ride mice-driven chariots or leathery bats, with pale, attenuated bodies gleaming in the moonlight. Such a brilliant ability to "realistically" describe each element of these tiny figures was perhaps a result of the artist's experience as a miniature painter. The work's finely captured detail actually allows for an expansive study of the subject, as if the viewer were peering through a microscope to examine the fairies' various costumes and anatomies. This was perfectly suited for the Victorian viewer; many believed in fairies as real-life specimens of minute perfection, and often went on "scientific expeditions" to find the creatures. Joining the fairy population in the present work are Shakespeare's forbidden lovers Lysander and Hermia, who have fled the Athenian court and must travel through the enchanted wood to find safe haven. Simmons' composition records the moment in Midsummer's Act II, Scene II in which Lysander and Hermia find themselves lost and decide to sleep, oblivious to the surrounding multitude of fairies and woodland creatures. Lysander holds Hermia's ringed finger in one hand, the other touching the loamy moss of the forest floor explaining "One turf shall serve as pillow for us both;/One heart, one bed, two bosoms, and one troth" (Act II.ii, 41-2). Upon waking, Lysander will fall in love with Helena (perhaps the figure in the distance to Hermia's right), the result of a potion applied by the mischievous fairy Puck (who may be among the retinue at their feet, or perhaps he is the shadowy figure lurking at center left).