Emma Hamilton
This landmark exhibition recovers Emma from myth and misrepresentation, and reveals her to be an active and influential historical figure in her own right. One of the greatest female lives of her era.
From humble origins, Emma Hamilton rose to national and international fame as a model, performer and interpreter of neo-classical fashion, yet she is often remembered simply as Lord Nelson's mistress.
Emma’s compelling story will be explored through exceptional fine art; antiquities that inspired Emma’s famous ‘attitudes’; costumes that show her impact on contemporary fashions; prints and caricatures that carried her image to a mass audience; her personal letters and those of Nelson and William Hamilton; and finally the uniform coat that Nelson wore at Trafalgar, retained by Emma until destitution forced her to part with it.
