When delivering a talk, my preparation varies depending on the topic. In this instance, I had made a last minute decision to switch the theme from the Elizabethan Prodigy House to the Victorian Country House as I'd been struggling to condense so sprawling a topic as the prodigy house and cult of sovereignty. It's always … Continue reading She Noted: Tabletop Talks – The Victorian Country House
I often find myself wishing that I owned a stash of Victorian fashion magazines - perhaps those gorgeously volumnious bound editions that are practically bursting at the seams with patterns, tidbits and illustrated fashion plates. Sigh, there's the dream. Until I have the luxury of even more shelf space, there are plenty of ways to … Continue reading Thoughts On A Victorian Lady’s Guide to Fashion and Beauty by Mimi Matthews for fellow historians and readers
Running a household in Victorian England had become a science – with tasks to be delegated and a system of categorised activity for those at every level of society. When Girouard writes of the eminent concern for ‘morality, domesticity, organisation and hospitality’[1] in the country house the emphasis is on the rigid upholding of standards … Continue reading The Victorian Country House: Morality, Domesticity & Organisation
Prince Albert had quite the curatorial character, something expressed through the fervor of his collecting habits and especially when outfitting an estate. In the management of art works belonging to the royal households, Albert proved himself to be meticulous, a factor which Lucy Whittaker examines when writing on his ‘systematic approach to art and frames’1. … Continue reading Prince Albert: Patron & Collector – A Curatorial Character
