The Wet (After Ophelia) originated as a response to Millais’ Ophelia. After several trips to Tate Britain to see the Pre-Raphaelites, Wilson felt the urge to paint a response to the painting that’s much more defiant and comfortable to look at. Georg comments, “This creature is very much the spirit or guardian of its river. Unlike the way that Millais painted Elizabeth Siddal, I wanted to paint a much stronger kind of creature. And when Millais painted Elizabeth Siddal in the bath to model for his painting, she got very ill from the chills she was subjected to; she looks very frail in the painting. I wanted to make a response to this painting that represents this creature at total ease in their surroundings, because they simply are part of those surroundings. It’s almost like the river is growing through it. They have weeds dripping out of their eyes and out of their mouth and they’re totally at ease in that setting. They exist symbiotically with the river.”

Unlike the Victorian flower symbolism we encounter in Millais painting, Wilson paints specific British wildlife that exists in rivers, from crowfoot to other river flora.