This book offers a renewed look at Emma Hamilton, the eighteenth-century celebrity who was depicted by many major artists, including Angelica Kauffman, George Romney, and Elisabeth Vigee-Le Brun. Adopting an art historical and feminist lens, Ersy Contogouris analyzes works of art in which Hamilton appears, her performances, and writings by her contemporaries to establish her impact on this pivotal moment in European history and art. This pioneering volume shows that Hamilton did not attempt to present a coherent or polished identity, and argues instead that she was a kaleidoscope of different selves through which she both expressed herself and presented to others what they wanted to see. She was resilient, effectively asserted her agency, and was a powerful inspiration for generations of artists and women in their own search for expression and self-actualization.
- ISBN10 0815374232
- ISBN13 9780815374237
- Publish Date 3 July 2018 (first published 27 June 2018)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Publisher Taylor & Francis Inc
- Imprint CRC Press Inc
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 186
- Language English