The Attitudes of Lady Hamilton

1791

Pietro Antonio Novelli

Associated Names
Pietro Antonio Novelli

Artist, Venetian, 1729 - 1804

This drawing features one woman shown in eight different poses, depicted in a sketch-like style. In the top row, she is standing in five different positions, getting lower to the ground from left to right. She has long, dark hair and pale skin, and she wears a long dress with a shawl draped around her arms and shoulders. In the bottom row, she is shown sitting or reclining on the ground next to a large vase. In each of the poses, her facial expression changes; she alternates between angry, sad, relaxed, and happy. The background is plain, off-white paper.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    pen and brown ink on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund

  • Dimensions

    overall: 19.7 x 32.2 cm (7 3/4 x 12 11/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1988.14.1

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Sale, Christie's, 6 July 1977, lot 69); Kunsthandel Bellinger, Munich, 1987; purchased by NGA, 1988.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1996

  • Vases and Volcanoes: Sir William Hamilton and His Collection, British Museum, London, 1996, no. 159.

2024

  • Sir William e Lady Hamilton, Gallerie d'Italia-Napoli, Naples, 2024-2025, pp. 142, 146, no. III.6, repro.

Bibliography

1977

  • Kunsthandel Bellinger (Katrin Krass), MASTER DRAWINGS, 1987, no.38.

1996

  • Jenkins, Ian, and Kim Sloan. Vases and Volcanoes: Sir William Hamilton and His Collection. Exh. cat. British Museum, London, 1996, no. 159.

1998

  • Van de Sandt, Udolpho. "Le 'Attitudini' di Lady Hamilton, Emma Hart a Venezia nel 1791." Saggi e Memorie di Storia dell'Arte 22 (1998), 307, 308, fig. 8.

2005

  • Prettejohn, Elizabeth. Beauty & Art, 1750-2000 Oxford, 2005: 37-38, fig. 19.

2024

  • Leone, Francesco, and Mazzocca, Fernando, editors. Sir William e Lady Hamilton. Exh. cat. Gallerie d'Italia, Naples, 2024: no. III.6, 142-143, color repro.

2025

  • Gabszewicz, Anton and Gray, Jonathan, editors. Thomas Baxter Jnr 1782-1821. London, 2025: no. 31, pp. 51, color repro.

Inscriptions

recto: lower left in black ink: Pietro Antonio Novelli Veneto dis.; by other hand, lower center in graphite: attitudes ofL'.Hamilton.; lower right in brown ink: 3; verso: none

Markings

none

Watermarks

none

Wikidata ID

Q64619665

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