Shortly after joining the Royal Academy in 1807, William Etty attended a lecture series by John Opie, who advised his students that “colouring is the sunshine of the art, that clothes poverty in smiles…and doubles the charms of beauty.” The Flower Girl demonstrates that Etty took this advice to heart. It is one part portrait and one part still life, both genres that were poorly regarded in an era when history painting reigned supreme.
Within the Academy, Etty was respected for his ability to produce realistic flesh tones, though his emphasis on nudes led to accusations of indecency. His early works were an important influence upon William Holman Hunt and John Everett Millais, two of the three founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.
