Lady Hawarden, 'Isabella Grace and Florence Elizabeth Maude, 5 Princes Gardens', photograph.

Sepia photograph, mounted on green card, of two young women standing on a terrace, arms linked

Given by Lady Clementina Tottenham

From departmental notes

'Clementina, Lady Hawarden(Untitled) Photographic Study (or) Study from Life (D.626) c.1862-c.1863 5 Princes Gardens, exterior: terrace: Isabella Grace and Florence Elizabeth (left profile), standing, embracing. View north-west over Princes Gate gardens: backs of houses in Princes Gate and in Exhibition Road in background. Inscription (verso of mount): (X614-)2; ?Watermark centre right. 230 x 210 mm PH 300-1947 Literature/Reproductions: National Art Slide Library no. 92.096; V&A Pict Library negative no. GA 1255 (reference no. 17895); V&A poster (out of print 1987). Arts Council exhibition catalogue, 'From today painting is dead': The Beginnings of Photograph 1972, cover; ed. Graham Ovenden, Clementina Lad Hawarden, 1974, p. 95; Roy Aspin, 'Oh Weary Neutral Days', The British Journal of Photograp (28 May 1982), p.565 (upper right); ed. Mark Haworth-Booth, The Golden Age of British Photography (photogravure set), 1984; Margaret Harker, 'A Golden Age?', The British Journal of Photography (9 November 1984), p.1199); Virgini Dodier, 'Haden, Photography and Salmon Fishing' Print Quarterly, Ill, 1986, p.45, fig.34 (discussed p.46).From today painting is dead': The Beginnings of Photography, Arts Council at Victoria and Alber Museum, 1972. No.417; Frauen in der Kunst (travelling exhibition), Neue Gesellschaft fur bildende Kunst, Berlin, 1977; The Golden Age of British Photography (travelling exhibition), Victoria and Albert Museum, 1984-85. At first glance, this photograph could be mistaken for a fashion plate, the models turning just so in order to display the sweep of the dresses. On looking more closely, however, j becomes clear that Isabella Grace is dressed in the height of fashion. In keeping with fashion developments of 1863 and 1864, her crinoline is fuller at the back rather than round, i a style which led ultimately to the bustle in the 1870s. With her hat and jacket on, she could be preparing to go out to mak calls. In contrast, Florence Elizabeth is costumed from the dressing-up box. The skirt which has been draped over her light summer dress appears in many other photographs. Though she seems not to be wearing a crinoline, her outfit has been carefully arranged so that her silhouette complements her sister's form. The basic formal contrasts of the composition serve to counterpoint its centre: Isabella Grace's serene face, steady and in focus, poised beside Florence Elizabeth's wavering, unfocused profil perdu.'

Reason For Production: Exhibition
Reason For Production: Retail

This has become Lady Hawarden’s signature photograph and has been reproduced many times. It contains the characteristic features of her work: her fine-looking daughters, elegantly dressed and with arms affectionately linked; the plein air (open air) setting on the terrace of the family’s town house in London; the careful geometry of the composition; the clever use of focus to silhouette the girls against the vague mass of the buildings beyond; the gaze back at the camera by the older of the two models; and, finally, the open meaning of the work.

300-1947