The Wish
Theodor von Holst, 1840Fine art reproduction on 200gsm matte paper. A5 to A1, plus 12x16, 18x24 and 24x36 inches.Snow at the window, a fire in the hearth, and a woman dealing cards on the wall. Picture her watching over your winter evenings.
The Wish by Theodor von Holst shows a richly dressed woman at a lamp-lit table, dealing playing cards. Her dark hair falls loose, her rings catch the light, and her gaze never leaves you. She seems to know the outcome before the last card falls. Look closely at her hands. They are the calmest thing in the painting. Lamplight against deep shadow, rich fabric and the glint of jewelled rings. Notice the lamp beside her, the only light in the room.
Von Holst painted The Wish in 1840. He was a London painter of German descent, encouraged as a young student by Henry Fuseli, the painter of The Nightmare. He died in 1844, aged only 34. Years later, the young Dante Gabriel Rossetti saw The Wish in Lord Northwick's collection and wrote his poem The Card-Dealer about her. In Rossetti's poem, the game she plays is life itself. The painting later belonged to the art critic Brian Sewell and now hangs in the Yale Center for British Art.
The look
Lamplight glowing against deep shadow, rich fabrics and the glint of jewelled rings. Mysterious, intimate and quietly hypnotic. Moody wall art and a femme fatale for a dark academia study, a goth bedroom or a reading room.
Sizes
| Size | Centimetres | Inches |
|---|---|---|
| A5 | 14.8 x 21 cm | 5.8 x 8.3 in |
| A4 | 21 x 29.7 cm | 8.3 x 11.7 in |
| A3 | 29.7 x 42 cm | 11.7 x 16.5 in |
| A2 | 42 x 59.4 cm | 16.5 x 23.4 in |
| A1 | 59.4 x 84.1 cm | 23.4 x 33.1 in |
| 12 x 16 in | 30.5 x 40.6 cm | 12 x 16 in |
| 18 x 24 in | 45.7 x 61 cm | 18 x 24 in |
| 24 x 36 in | 61 x 91.4 cm | 24 x 36 in |
Custom sizes on request. Inch sizes have a slightly different shape from A sizes, so the edges trim a little. Size guide
Frames and delivery
Choose a black, white or oak frame, or order the print unframed. It is printed locally in the UK, Europe, the US, Canada or Australia, at the location closest to you. Free tracked shipping, no customs fees. Printing and delivery
Gifting
A mysterious gift for a birthday, an anniversary or a new home. A painting with a poem behind it.
More like this
More from Fuseli's circle: The Nightmare by Henry Fuseli in our Dark Romanticism Art collection. For more Rossetti, see Joan of Arc by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. For another woman who reads the future, see The Crystal Ball by John William Waterhouse.
