19thC; Hawarden C, D 190, Dundrum House, grounds, Florence Elizabeth, Lord Hawarden, Clementina, unidentified young man, c. 1859-61

Sepia photograph, mounted on green card, showing three children and a fiddler beside an out-house.

Given by Lady Clementina Tottenham

From departmental note

'Clementina, Lady Hawarden (Untitled) Photographic Study (or) Study from Life (D.190) c.1859-c.1861 Dundrum House, grounds: Togge House: exterior:Florence Elizabeth (right profile), in fancy dress (peasant blouse, skirt and scarf), eyes down, barefoot, standing, hands folded on Lord Hawarden's right shoulder; Lord Hawarden, seated on up-ended barrel, playing fiddle; Clementina, in fancy dress (peasant blouse, skirt and scarf), eyes down, barefoot, standing on plank, left hand on hip; and unidentified young man (left profile), standing on plank, left hand on hip. South lawn in left background. Inscription (verso): No 53 . Inscription (verso of mount): (X614-)53 240 x 284 mm PH 275-1947 Series 33 Literature: Microfilm: 3.18.82 Lady Hawarden took many photographs of fancy dress tableaux of 'peasant life'. This was a popular theme in mid-19th century painting and photography. In the work of painters such as Millet and Jules Breton, farm work is presented as ritualized and endowed with spiritual qualities far removed from the reality of drudgery. In the work of the British photographer Henry Peach Robinson, renowned in the early 1860s for composite photograps such as Autumn and Bringing Home the May, idealized peasant life 1 represented by anonymous models. Lady Hawarden, however, made no attempt to disguise her models.'

Reason For Production: Exhibition
Reason For Production: Retail

Lady Hawarden has arranged three of her children and the man who plays the fiddle (violin) in a tableau. Two of the children are barefoot and perhaps play the role of Gypsies. Photography was the most realistic medium available in the 1850s, but many photographers chose to use it for other purposes - such as tableau-making and storytelling.

275-1947