Tim Richardson is captivated by an exhibition that shows Nelson’s mistress to have been much more than a self-made seductress.
She makes for quite a poster girl. In George Romney’s Emma as Circe (about 1782), the widening, darkly limpid eyes of the teenaged Emma Hamilton stare out urgently from under a swirl of bundled auburn hair.
With white décolletage framed by a simple smock, cheeks rouged in excitement, sensuous red lips parted in fear (or anticipation?), this freely realised portrait of one of the most charismatic and beautiful women of the 18th century—the daughter of a Cheshire blacksmith—is one of at least 70 that Romney completed of Emma in various incarnations between 1782 and 1791.
A good number of these portraits—Emma as Cassandra, as St Cecilia, as Miranda— are included in this splendid exhibition. Clearly, Romney had no cause to rely on the fauxdemure coquettishness of conventional portraiture to grab the attention.
However, it’s not all about sex appeal. Striking the distinctive poses and ‘attitudes’ for which she was to become celebrated, Emma collaborated creatively with Romney to conceive each picture as a miniature theatrical performance. This makes her much more than a mere artist’s model or—worse—‘muse’. her relationship with Romney was more akin to that of an actor with a film director, yet it’s also clear that Romney was both romantically and sexually obsessed by Emma—and he was not the only one.
Esta historia es de la edición December 28 2016 de Country Life UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición December 28 2016 de Country Life UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery