\paperw19995 \margr0\margl0 \plain \fs20 \f1 A fantastic theme derived from ShakespeareÆs plays, this work is distinguished by its painstaking, almost obsessive executio
n. It was painted by Dadd during his confinement in a mental asylum, after having killed his father. Like the strophes of a poem, the painting is made up of a succession of figures û led by the gnome at the center of the picture û who are watching the
ôfairy fellerö splitting a nut, which will be used to build a new carriage for the queen of the fairies.
