Adélaïde Labille-Guiard (1749–1803) rose from shopkeeper’s daughter to an official portraitist of the French royal court—only to have her achievements reduced to ash by the Revolution. While she defied societal barriers to build a remarkable artistic career, Adélaïde's legacy was long overshadowed by celebrated portraitist and memoirist Élisabeth Vigée-Lebrun.

Today, we’re joined by Bridget Quinn, author of the first (!!) full biography of the trailblazing artist: Portrait of a Woman: Art, Rivalry, and Revolution in the Life of Adélaïde Labille-Guiard. Quinn offers a fascinating new perspective on the layers of Adélaïde’s life—and her work. We discuss her life, her feminism, her sexuality, and her alleged “feud” with Vigée-Lebrun.

Pick up a copy of Portrait of a Woman here.

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The Chevalier d'Éon (1728–1810) is known as a transgender icon, living the first half of their life as a man, and the second as a woman. Theirs is also a life that is remarkably documented in contemporary artwork. But how much can we conclusively determine about how the Chevalier viewed themselves from their portraits?

Today's Image(s): Alexandre-Auguste Robineau, The Fencing-Match between the Chevalier de Saint-George and the Chevalier d'Éon (c. 1787-9). Oil on canvas. Royal Collection Trust.

And: Thomas Stewart, Chevalier d'Éon, after Jean-Laurent Mosnier (1792). National Portrait Gallery.

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How did the daughter of an African ruler become goddaughter to Queen Victoria? A young black girl named Aina, later called Sarah Forbes Bonetta (1843–1880), began life in West Africa. But she would grow up to become a popular member of Victorian royal circles.

Today's Image: Hannah Uzor, Aina, Sarah Forbes Bonetta Davies (2020). Acrylic & fabric on canvas, 120x80 cm. Osborne House, United Kingdom.

Hannah Uzor on the English Heritage Podcast

Tour Scotland with me! | Tour Germany & Austria with me!

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With the tragic demise of Lady Jane Grey (1537-1554) serving as inspiration for countless works of art, it was hard to select just one to focus our attention on. But I did it, and in this episode, we dive into the short life of England’s Nine Days Queen.

Today's Image: Paul Delaroche, The Execution of Lady Jane Grey (1833). Oil on Canvas. National Gallery, London.

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Join me in traveling this year! Scotland Trip | Germany + Austria Trip

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Amanda is joined on the podcast for this special episode by Jennifer Higgie, author of The Other Side: A Story of Women in Art and the Spirit World. 

Uncover the role that spiritualism has played in art, particularly since the dawn of modernism, and delve into the biographies of some trailblazing female artists who were all influenced by the occult.

The first major work of art history to focus on women artists and their engagement with the spirit world, The Other Side is so much more than a retelling of art history. It is an exploration of the ways that the otherworldly has shaped mankind’s (and womankind’s) creative expression.

The Other Side by Jennifer Higgie is available right now, from Pegasus Books.

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At age 42, a nun named Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) decided to heed the command—which she believed came from God—to write down that which she saw and heard. It just so happened that what she saw and heard were visions from Heaven, containing extraordinary sights and sounds that would capture the attention of Popes and Emperors alike for centuries to come.

Today's artwork: Hildegard von Bingen, Self-Portrait frontispiece from Scivias (1142-1152). Ink on parchment. Wiesbaden State Library.

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It may have been easy for Joséphine de Beauharnais (1763-1814) to scoff at the “extraordinary destiny” once promised to her by a fortune-teller. From the Island of Martinique, where she spent her girlhood, to the shadow of the guillotine, where she became a single mother, Josephine likely never would have predicted her remarkable rise to become “more than a queen”—until, that is, she met one Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821).

Today's Image: Sir David Wilkie, Joséphine and the Fortune-teller (1837). Oil on Canvas. National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh.

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Swiss painter Henry Fuseli (1741-1825) was the man behind one of art history’s most famous spooky paintings: ‘The Nightmare.’ But how much do you actually know about this dream-fuelled Gothic image?

Henry Fuseli, The Nightmare (1781). Oil on Canvas. Detroit Institute of Arts, Michigan.

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Last seen in 1945, the Amber Room is the world’s most valuable missing piece of art, valued as highly as $500 million. Looted by the Nazis after Operation Barbarossa, this “Eighth Wonder of the World” once symbolized peace and unity. Today, it instead represents one of art history’s greatest mysteries.

Today's Artwork: The Amber Room. Catherine Palace/Tsarskoye Selo State Museum and Heritage Site.

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Dr. Kathleen B. Jones joins us on the podcast to discuss not only her new book, CITIES OF WOMEN, but also to dive into the life of literary and artistic icon Christine de Pizan (1364/65-1431).

Listen to our conversation to hear how Christine became not only the first professional female writer in Europe, but also the first person in France to earn a living as a writer, period. Plus, we discuss the ins and outs of medieval manuscript-making, and the parallels between the obstacles faced by professional women in Christine's day and our own.

‘Cities of Women’ is out on September 5, 2023 - get your copy here!

Today's Work: Christine de Pizan, ‘The Book of the Queen’ (Harley MS 4431) (c. 1410-1414). Parchment manuscript. 36.5 x 28.5 cm. British Library, London.

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Thanks HelloFresh! Go to HelloFresh.com/50arthistory and use code 50arthistory for 50% off plus free shipping!

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When historians first made the link between a book of hours at Trinity College, Cambridge and two others belonging to Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn, they weren't just identifying who owned it. Yes, yes - the book was owned by Henry VIII's right-hand-man (for a time, at least): Thomas Cromwell. But this remarkable book has now become the only object from any 16th-century portrait to survive to this day.

What can such an item tell us about the man who owned it, his times, and what he wanted everyone who saw his portrait to know?

Today's artwork(s): Hans Holbein the Younger, Portrait of Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex (1532-33). Oil on panel, 30.7 in × 25.2 in. Frick Collection, New York.

AND the 1527 Book of Hours, on display at Hever Castle through November 2023.

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