This Women’s History Month, six paintings by the artist Emma Gaggiotti (1825-1915) will be presented together for the first time at Osborne on the Isle of Wight. A professional artist in the Victorian era, Gaggiotti worked at a time when female painters were largely considered hobbyists. She went on to be championed by Prince Albert and was one of the few female artists of the 19th century to attain international recognition during her lifetime, yet is still relatively unknown today. Curators at English Heritage hope the display will bring much-deserved wider recognition to Gaggiotti and her works.

Among the paintings on display is Gaggiotti’s self-portrait. Loaned by the Royal Collection Trust, the artist depicts herself with her painter's toolkit, dressed in black.  Her solemn expression and half-turned pose align her with the tradition of Old Master self-portraitists such as Rembrandt, Vermeer and Van Dyke. A professional female artist and as such on the periphery of artistic acceptability, Gaggiotti’s image of herself – commissioned by Queen Victoria – defies convention.

Born in Rome in 1825, Gaggiotti was raised in artistic circles, her early training influenced by Raphael. She moved to London aged 23 and went on to exhibit at the Royal Academy, paint for the Prussian Royal Family and have works commissioned by both Prince Albert and Queen Victoria.

Following the end of a short-lived marriage in 1848, Gaggiotti supported herself and her mother financially with her work as an artist. At the time, it was considered vulgar for upper-class women to have anything to do with money, and as an artist, Gaggiotti was also battling the view that “women’s brains were too small and their bodies too weak for them to create great art.”[1]

Despite this, she succeeded in exhibiting her works at the Royal Academy and came to the attention of Prince Albert, who commissioned four works and purchased another, all of which he presented to Queen Victoria. These have been on display at Osborne House ever since.

Through a re-presentation of these paintings, Curators at English Heritage hope to reveal a fuller picture of Emma Gaggiotti, her life and her talent as an artist. The presentation also poses the question as to why so many professional female artists of the Victorian era are still largely unknown today. The displays include the loan of her self-portrait, and the five works purchased by Prince Albert: Faith, Hope, Charity, Religion & Aurora.

[1] ‘Feminist historian, Pamela Nunn’s summary of the Victorian view, written in 1987’

English Heritage Curator Christopher Warleigh-Lack said

“Gaggiotti was a successful artist within her lifetime, commissioned by royal families in Europe and exhibiting at the Royal Academy. The fact that she is largely unknown today cannot merely be accounted for by the inequality of the Victorian era, but by a wider problem with the recounting of history and inclusion of historic female artists today. By presenting her works together for the first time at Osborne and bringing her to the attention of our thousands of visitors, we hope to do our part in shining a spotlight on the forgotten female artists of history.”

Lucy Peter, Curator of Paintings at Royal Collection Trust, said

“We couldn’t be more excited to help bring these remarkable works together for the very first time. It gives visitors to Osborne a rare opportunity to explore the full scope of an artist whose contribution has been overlooked for far too long.”

Painters and Patrons: Emma Gaggiotti and Prince Albert opens at Osborne House on 28 March and will run until October 2027.

Read more information about the exhibition

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