Nine members of the Exhibitionists visited Lady Lever Art Gallery for a planned guided tour,to learn more about some of the exhibits.During a one-hour tour, we were told by our guide, Gary, about Lord Leverhulme’s life, career and passion for art, particularly works by the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. He collected many hundreds of pieces and our tour provided an insight into five selected paintings.The Daphnephoria (1830-96) by Frederic LeightonThis huge painting (2.26m high by 5.18m wide) depicts a festival held in honour of Apollo, the god of the sun and music. The doors into the gallery were actually designed to accommodate this massive painting.

The Daphnephoria (1830-96) by Frederic Leighton

This huge painting (2.26m high by 5.18m wide) depicts a festival held in honour of Apollo, the god of the sun and music. The doors into the gallery were actually designed to accommodate this massive painting.

The Blessed Damozel (1873-80) by Dante Gabriel Rosetti

This painting illustrates Rossetti's poem with the same title, of 1850. The Scapegoat (1854-55) by William Holman Hunt Traditionally, the sins of the people were loaded onto the Scapegoat which was driven into the desert to die, whence the sins would also be expunged. Hunt travelled to the shore of the Dead Sea to paint the landscape, and added the goat back in England.

The Black Brunswickers (1860) by Sir John Everett Millais

A young English woman with her lover, a German soldier, before the Battle of Waterloo. The fabric of the woman's dress is painted with astonishingly realism.

Bubbles (1829-96) by Sir John Everett Millais

This picture of a boy blowing bubbles with a clay pipe became the artist's best known work. It was used as an advertisement for Pears soap, the rival brand to Sunlight Soap.

We concluded our trip with lunch and a chat in the café.

Geoff Curtis