By Arria Perrault

with additional discoveries and 3D composition by Rosie Gray and Sudane Erato

The “real life” castle of Neuschwanstein, from which the Neufreistadt “Schloss” is inspired, is an example of an extensive architectural movement in Europe and around the world, the Gothic Revival. Through new buildings or restorations of ruined old buildings, architects have been inspired by the gothic architecture of the 10th through the 13th centuries in Europe. King Ludwig II of Bavaria was inspired by a restored castle in France and commissioned Neuschwanstein.

All arts influence each other. What happens in architecture will also happen in painting or sculpture. I have tried to find painting movements that were inspired by Middle Age legends and that are somehow contemporary. The artists of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood meet this criteria. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (also known as the Pre-Raphaelites) was a group of English painters, poets, and critics, mostly men, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. They were particularly fascinated by medieval culture, believing it to possess a spiritual and creative integrity that had been lost in later eras. Their paintings are delicate and colorful. They have a similar look and feel.

Among the paintings of the Pre-Raphaelites, I have selected the ones which are related to themes that are also represented in the decoration of Neuschwanstein or related to it in some way. There are themes of the operas of Wagner (Wagner has also inspired the King of Bavaria), Arthurian themes and other Middle Age scenerios and legends.

I have put together paintings in my Pinterest account which can be compared with the original paintings of Neuschwanstein.