Emancipations

The radical transformation that took place during the Age of Enlightenment did not bring much change as far as women's rights were concerned. However, it was precisely in the 18th century that ‘femininity’ as a category appeared in the public discourse, and when female voices were heard for the first time (be it to a limited extent). Till this day, the image of rebellious women marching on Versailles carries with it an emancipatory potential and connects gender to revolution.

The collection also contains a series of drawings depicting the ‘attitudes’ of Emma Hamilton—an actress and a dancer, and the muse of painters and politicians of her time. The poses, which are related to mime art and the tradition of live paintings, were actually an attempt to perform antiquity, to give life to something seemingly dead. The public and the private sphere become mixed, the subject and the object are separated by a vague line. Emma Hamilton—as a pioneer performer—becomes a moving figure who transgressed all boundaries—including class divisions.

In 1795, when the last partition of Poland took place, the king ordered copies to be drawn. In this context, Emma Hamilton’s ‘attitudes’ become a mournful performance, a compensation offered by art.