appreciate = john william waterhouse

everyone has phases in their taste is art, don't they?
i certainly do

when i was in my late teens i adored the pre-raphaelite artists
more than adored, actually
it was almost as if no other artists could compare
at the time, i loved ALL the paintings, bought prints, collected books on the subject, visited galleries...
you get the idea
thankfully, my artistic appreciation has widened since then
however,
i still admire the mastery of my favourite pre-raphaelites: burne-jones, ingres, millais and waterhouse
coming across a waterhouse that i don't remember clearly, reminded me of those days of devotion
i wasn't into bands or pop culture to any great extent
i had a misplaced rather than misspent youth
never really feeling at home with my peers who loved bros, wham and madonna
ophelia, hylas and the lady of shallot were my idols
this picture by waterhouse circe invidiosa (circe poisoning the sea) stands out for me
my liking for this picture is, i think, as superficial as enjoying the intensity of the colours
vibrant yet dark

i don't see malevolence in the pose of the character but perhaps the lack of it has more menance

what's your take?