The De Morgan Collection, The De Morgan Foundation, United Kingdom.
Location History:
The painting was originally bequeathed to the Foundation by Wilhelmina Stirling, Evelyn's younger sister and biographer. It has recently been a focal point in specialized exhibitions, including the Pre-Raphaelite Artist of Hope exhibition at Towneley Hall in Burnley.
When analyzing Evelyn De Morgan’s Lux in Tenebris (1895), you are essentially looking at a highly optimized visual model of system recovery—a state where spiritual illumination actively overrides a corrupted physical environment.
The title itself translates from Latin to "Light in Darkness", pulling directly from the Gospel of St. John to establish the core operational logic of the painting. The central node of the composition is a radiant, ethereal female figure who is actively emerging from an inky blackness. To maximize the physical hardware output of the painting, De Morgan actually worked genuine gold paint directly into the tiny embroidered flames on the figure's robe, physically boosting the canvas's luminescence. Interestingly, the model for this central avatar of light was Jane Hales, De Morgan’s own maid and frequent artistic muse.
This central light source is engineered to push back against a very specific environmental threat. At the base of the layout, there is a murky swamp teeming with gnarled crocodiles. In De Morgan’s symbolic lexicon, these prehistoric beasts are hardcoded to represent the monstrous reality of the physical world, earthly materialism, and the inner demons of the human psyche. By deploying the figure's glowing halo, the painting creates a Spiritualist framework where the soul successfully banishes these primordial forces, ascending from material darkness into enlightenment.
What is most fascinating from a technical standpoint is that curatorial debugging revealed a major version update within the canvas itself—a pentimento.
Originally, the central figure was rendered holding a flaming torch aloft.
This initial asset symbolized an active, aggressive, Promethean pursuit of knowledge and intellectual enlightenment.
However, De Morgan deliberately deployed a patch, painting over the torch and replacing it with an olive branch.
This exact modification fundamentally shifts the entire output message of the artwork. Instead of an aggressive quest, the system now communicates a peaceful, harmonious reconciliation, perfectly aligning the spiritual allegory with De Morgan's strict pacifist logic and her hope for a gentle evolution of humanity.
Lux in Tenebris (“Light in Darkness”) presents light as a force of hope and resilience amid uncertainty. The radiant female figure, clothed in flowing white robes and encircled by a glowing halo, symbolizes purity, wisdom, and spiritual illumination. Holding an olive branch, she evokes peace and renewal, while the rocky shoreline and dark waters suggest the hardships and chaos of human existence. The crocodile beneath her feet represents danger and the triumph of virtue over fear. The contrast between the luminous figure and the surrounding darkness reinforces the enduring power of hope, suggesting that compassion and inner strength can overcome even the deepest shadows.
