Rossetti, born to a literary, Italian immigrant family, struggled mightily all his life to write poetry and paint, and do both well. He never achieved critical acclaim for his painting, but that didn't stop him from co-founding the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. His personal life was marked by tragedy (most of which he was largely responsible for, himself) and an obsession with two women (his own wife and William Morris' wife, Jane), both of whom we see - repeatedly - in his later works.