This wistful, red-headed beauty is Calypso, a nymph from ancient Greek mythology who detains the hero Odysseus on her paradisiacal island of Ogygia. After seven years the Gods order Calypso to let Odysseus go and here she stares across the ocean hoping for his return. Depictions of mythological and historical figures whose stories were both romantic and tragic were especially popular with nineteenth-century painters working in the period of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. The artist, Cecil Leonard Burns was the first curator of the South London Gallery (from where the Southwark Art Collection originates) and principal of the Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts between 1897 and 1899. This is one of 10 examples of his work in the collection and reflects Southwark’s large holdings of Arts and Crafts period material.