[Vwoolf] Virginia Woolf's eyes

[Sarah M. Hall]

 Thanks, Stuart, I found a similar line in Angelica's contribution to Recollections of Virginia Woolf, ed. Joan Russell Noble (Peter Owen, 1972):


'her bladed nose, like the breastbone of a bird or the wing of a bat, surmounted by deeply hooded melancholy grey-green eyes. She had the worn beauty of a hare's paw.' (p. 84)


It made me remember that as a child I used to notice the eye colour of everyone I met; now, almost never. The child's world is in close-up, I suppose, whereas adults don't want to encroach on personal space, or gaze deeply into the eyes of a near-stranger.

I quite like the idea that we are unsure what VW looked like in terms of hair and eye colour. We all know about her youthful beauty, but this dearth of basic physical information suggests that people who knew her found her mind, conversation and behaviour much more memorable and noteworthy. 


    On Friday, 28 October 2022 at 15:55:29 BST, Stuart N. Clarke via Vwoolf <vwoolf at lists.osu.edu> wrote:  
 
  From: Neverow, Vara S. via Vwoolf Sent: Friday, October 28, 2022 2: 37 PM To: Marielle O'Neill (1806529) PHD ; EllenMoody ; Laura Cernat Cc: VWOOLF Listserv ; vwoolf@ lists Subject: Re: [Vwoolf] Jigsaw puzzle w/ Virginia Woolf ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍   From: Neverow, Vara S. via Vwoolf Sent: Friday, October 28, 2022 2:37 PMTo: Marielle O'Neill (1806529) PHD ; EllenMoody ; Laura Cernat Cc: VWOOLF Listserv ; vwoolf at lists Subject: Re: [Vwoolf] Jigsaw puzzle w/ Virginia Woolf Good to know about Ray Strachey's painting. Guessing the colors in black and white photography is always a gamble—dark blonde and pale brown hair shades can be misinterpreted as can red, dark brown and black. ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍  Good to know about Ray Strachey's painting. 
Guessing the colors in black and white photography is always a gamble—dark blonde and pale brown hair shades can be misinterpreted as can red, dark brown and black. 
Several paintings by Vanessa Bell show Virginia's hair as rather dark brown... 
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw08084/Virginia-Woolf__;!!KGKeukY!zPtuAgzEefAaw13uqU9D7oDS_3QCrtKY5mTjn1qzZEWUXTuYbLt3OZ0lngHaIftVK9XbXv81rJVxsLXfax-pYmO5$   https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/virginia-woolf-making-waves-at-the-national-portrait-gallery-9603314.html__;!!KGKeukY!zPtuAgzEefAaw13uqU9D7oDS_3QCrtKY5mTjn1qzZEWUXTuYbLt3OZ0lngHaIftVK9XbXv81rJVxsLXfa-jUXcES$  
 https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://arthive.com/artists/61917*Vanessa_Bell/works/475415*Portrait_Of_Virginia_Woolf__;fn4!!KGKeukY!zPtuAgzEefAaw13uqU9D7oDS_3QCrtKY5mTjn1qzZEWUXTuYbLt3OZ0lngHaIftVK9XbXv81rJVxsLXfa5fA-oAZ$  
I wonder whether Woolf had dyed or lightened her hair around the time when Ray Strachey did the painting. ​
 Paula Maggio had posted a blog about the blonde hair in the jigsaw puzzle in 2020: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://bloggingwoolf.org/2020/09/24/a-puzzling-question-why-is-woolf-depicted-as-a-blue-eyed-blonde/amp/__;!!KGKeukY!zPtuAgzEefAaw13uqU9D7oDS_3QCrtKY5mTjn1qzZEWUXTuYbLt3OZ0lngHaIftVK9XbXv81rJVxsLXfa8V0Jomc$  . (It's not clear whether the artist ever responded to the query.)
 Also, on a related thread, I have a vague memory that someone claimed Woolf's eyes were green. Does anyone recall this? I can't find a link to anything about it right now. 
Vara
Vara Neverow(she/her/hers)Professor, English Department and Women’s and Gender Studies ProgramManaging Editor, Virginia Woolf Miscellany Southern Connecticut State University New Haven, CT 06515
203-392-6717neverowv1 at southernct.edu I acknowledge that Southern Connecticut State University was built on traditional territory of the indigenous peoples and nations of the Paugusett and Quinnepiac peoples.From: Marielle O'Neill (1806529) PHD <M.ONeill at leedstrinity.ac.uk>
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2022 8:54:43 AM
To: Neverow, Vara S. <neverowv1 at southernct.edu>; Ellen Moody <ellen.moody at gmail.com>; Laura Cernat <cernat.laura at kuleuven.be>
Cc: VWOOLF Listserv <vwoolf at lists.service.ohio-state.edu>; vwoolf at lists <vwoolf at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>
Subject: RE: [Vwoolf] Jigsaw puzzle w/ Virginia Woolf  
Virginia Woolf is depicted as blonde in the painting by Ray Strachey dating from the 1920s held in the National Portrait Gallery:

 

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw36771/Virginia-Woolf__;!!KGKeukY!zPtuAgzEefAaw13uqU9D7oDS_3QCrtKY5mTjn1qzZEWUXTuYbLt3OZ0lngHaIftVK9XbXv81rJVxsLXfa2FwGF8_$  

 

 

From: Vwoolf <vwoolf-bounces+m.oneill=leedstrinity.ac.uk at lists.osu.edu> On Behalf Of Neverow, Vara S. via Vwoolf
Sent: 28 October 2022 13:51
To: Ellen Moody <ellen.moody at gmail.com>; Laura Cernat <cernat.laura at kuleuven.be>
Cc: VWOOLF Listserv <vwoolf at lists.service.ohio-state.edu>; vwoolf at lists <vwoolf at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vwoolf] Jigsaw puzzle w/ Virginia Woolf

 

A few sources to consider (though not identical in concept!): Authors: https: //www. seriouspuzzles. com/famous-writers-1000pc-jigsaw-puzzle-by-eurographics/ https: //pixels. com/shop/puzzles/literary Artwork: https: //www. redbubble. com/shop/modernism+jigsaw-puzzles 

A few sources to consider (though not identical in concept!):

Authors:

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.seriouspuzzles.com/famous-writers-1000pc-jigsaw-puzzle-by-eurographics/__;!!KGKeukY!zPtuAgzEefAaw13uqU9D7oDS_3QCrtKY5mTjn1qzZEWUXTuYbLt3OZ0lngHaIftVK9XbXv81rJVxsLXfa8RVruQi$  

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://pixels.com/shop/puzzles/literary__;!!KGKeukY!zPtuAgzEefAaw13uqU9D7oDS_3QCrtKY5mTjn1qzZEWUXTuYbLt3OZ0lngHaIftVK9XbXv81rJVxsLXfa7dNQZCA$  

Artwork:

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.redbubble.com/shop/modernism*jigsaw-puzzles__;Kw!!KGKeukY!zPtuAgzEefAaw13uqU9D7oDS_3QCrtKY5mTjn1qzZEWUXTuYbLt3OZ0lngHaIftVK9XbXv81rJVxsLXfa8ozzEj7$  

 

Just curious--I wonder why Woolf is depicted as blonde in the jigsaw puzzle. 

 

Vara

 

 

 

Vara Neverow

(she/her/hers)

Professor, English Department and Women’s and Gender Studies Program

Managing Editor, Virginia Woolf Miscellany 

Southern Connecticut State University 

New Haven, CT 06515

203-392-6717

neverowv1 at southernct.edu

 

I acknowledge that Southern Connecticut State University was built on traditional territory of the indigenous peoples and nations of the Paugusett and Quinnepiac peoples.

From: Vwoolf <vwoolf-bounces+neverowv1=southernct.edu at lists.osu.edu> on behalf of Ellen Moody via Vwoolf <vwoolf at lists.osu.edu>
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2022 8:33:52 AM
To: Laura Cernat <cernat.laura at kuleuven.be>
Cc: VWOOLF Listserv <vwoolf at lists.service.ohio-state.edu>; vwoolf at lists <vwoolf at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vwoolf] Jigsaw puzzle w/ Virginia Woolf 

 

Just to say how much I like these puzzles. I shall buy the PBS one with the women writers for one of my daughters for Christmas!   Do people know of any others like these two? Ellen ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ ‍ 

Just to say how much I like these puzzles. I shall buy the PBS one with the women writers for one of my daughters for Christmas!  

Do people know of any others like these two?

 

Ellen

 

  
 



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