“Sometimes humorous, sometimes curious, fans decorated with animal subjects occupy The Fan Museum’s elegant Georgian interiors during the summer months of 2017. Throughout history fan painters have seen fit to exploit mankind’s innate love of animals, decorating fans with all manner of beasts. All Creatures Great & Small presents a menagerie of fans dating from the 1700s onward.

Always reflecting time and place, the display includes an early eighteenth century Dutch fan delicately painted with pheasants, parrots and turkeys (at this time considered exotic, even collectable creatures).”

“This exhibition considers the theme of male image, identity and appearance from the 16th century to the present day. The selection of portraits, from the National Galleries of Scotland and National Portrait Gallery, London collections will explore the elaborate hairstyles and fashions of the courtiers and cavaliers of the 16th and 17th centuries; the emergence of the dandy in the early 18th century; the rise of celebrity and the interest in male beauty and personal grooming; and representations of gender and sexuality.”

“Over the years, the life and work Samuel Johnson has proved irresistible as a topic of research, collection and contemplation. This exhibition features a variety of objects from some of the most prestigious private collectors of Johnsoniana, as well as from keen enthusiasts who are taken with Johnsonian ephemera and keepsakes with the same fervour.

‘Collecting Johnson’ explores the popularity of collecting memorabilia, and the preservation of the memory of the great figures from society.The exhibition will also showcase the research that collectors can contribute to the detailed picture we have of the man and his circle of friends.”

“Admiral Lord Nelson (1758 –1805) and his affection for his native county of Norfolk is the subject of the exhibition Nelson & Norfolk. The exhibition presents some of the most extraordinary and potent objects connected to Nelson, from his boyhood in Norfolk to his death at Trafalgar in 1805.

The exhibition is timely in that it coincides with the 200th anniversary of the laying of the foundation stone of the Nelson memorial in Great Yarmouth, the county’s most significant memorial to its local hero. It also follows on from the recent exhibition Emma Hamilton: Seduction & Celebrity at the National Maritime Museum Greenwich (November 2016 to 17 April, 2017).”

“House Style will demonstrate the power of fashion  and bring to life the captivating individuals from the Cavendish family, including Bess of Hardwick, one of the most powerful women of the 16^th century; the 18^th century “Empress of Fashion” Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire; and Adele Astaire, the sister and dance partner of Fred Astaire. Deborah Devonshire and Nancy Mitford, two of the Mitford sisters; model Stella Tennant and John F Kennedy’s sister ‘Kick’ Kennedy will also be central to the show.

Important artworks will also be on display, including rare costume designs from the early 17^th century by Inigo Jones, Surveyor to the King’s Works and one of the most notable architects of 17^th century England.”

“Bringing together Old Masters and contemporary artists whose work spans more than 350 years, Creating the Countryside provokes reflection on the artistic, social and political forces that have played an important role in forming successive generations’ perceptions of this ‘green and pleasant land’.

Works by artists including Thomas Gainsborough, Claude Lorrain, George Stubbs and Stanley Spencer are joined by pieces from contemporary artists such as Mat Collishaw, Anna Fox, Sigrid Holmwood and Grayson Perry to present viewers with a broad spectrum of responses to, and interpretations of, this sceptred isle.”

Jane Austen by the Sea, Prince Regent Gallery, Royal Pavilion, Brighton, 17 Jun 2017 – 18 Jan 2018

“A new display at the Royal Pavilion will explore Jane Austen’s relationship with coastal towns and life in Brighton during her time, to mark the bicentenary of her death.

The display will reassess Austen’s relationship with the town in the light of a long-term misunderstanding, arising from a hand-written letter of 8 January 1799. Curator Dr Alexandra Loske said: “For many years, Austen has been quoted as having written: ‘I assure you that I dread the idea of going to Brighton as much as you can do..’, but her sentence actually referred to Bookham, a village in Surrey, rather than Brighton.  We now know that Austen may not have felt as negatively about the town as has been thought.”

Jane Austen by the Sea will look at the seaside context of Austen’s plots and paint a picture of the leading resort of Brighton in the early 1800s, when it was a fashionable ‘watering place’ featured in novels like Pride and Prejudice.”

“A History of Fashion in 100 Objects is a major exhibition celebrating fashion from the 1600s to the present day. Showcasing 100 star objects drawn from the Fashion Museum’s world-class collection, these displays give visitors an instant insight into the era-defining outfits and headline pieces that have shaped our wardrobes over the past 400 years.

The exhibition also includes ten shoe ‘moments’ throughout history, from Georgian silk shoes to Nike Air trainers as well as a children’s trail featuring ten ‘historical fashion’ looks for kids, from the 1700s to the 2000s.”

“Told through the lens of seven premieres in seven European cities, this immersive exhibition takes you on a journey through nearly 400 years, culminating in the international explosion of opera in the 20th and 21st centuries.

Opera audiences in the 18th century were often lively. There were frequent reports of riots, such as the one depicted in the print, The Riot During the Opera ‘Artaxerxes’.Traditionally, punters could enter theatres for half-price toward the end of the evening, to see the short after-pieces that followed the main play. In 1763, the management of the Covent Garden Theatre announced that only full price tickets would be available. The response was an organised riot that destroyed the interior of the theatre and forced the theatre management to reinstate the half-price concession.”

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Exhibitions that have now finished:

The Vulgar: Fashion Redefined, The Barbican Art Gallery, London, 13 Oct 2016 – 5 Feb 2017 

“Potent, provocative and sometimes shocking, the word vulgar conjures up strong images, ideas and feelings in us all. The Vulgar is the first exhibition to explore the inherently challenging but utterly compelling territory of taste in fashion, from the renaissance through to contemporary design. Examining the constantly evolving notion of vulgarity in fashion whilst revelling in its excesses, you are invited to think again about exactly what makes something vulgar and why it is such a sensitive and contested term.

Drawn from major public and private collections worldwide, The Vulgar showcases over 120 stunning objects, ranging from historical costumes to couture and ready-to-wear looks.”

“Robert Adam had a long and enduring connection to London, establishing his practice there in 1758 and remaining in the city until his death in 1792. There is a greater density of his work in this city than anywhere else. This exhibition is the first time the architect’s work across the capital as a whole has been examined in a London museum.

On display will be some of Sir John Soane’s Museum’s most beautiful and influential designs for Adam’s projects in the city, showcasing his ground-breaking neo-classical style.  The exhibition examines the diverse range of projects he worked on, from those that survive such as the Admiralty Screen on Whitehall, and monuments in Westminster Abbey, to the grandiose and ambitious visions that were never built.”

Fire! Fire!, Museum of London, 23 July 2016 – 17 April 2017 (marking 350 years since the Great Fire)

“Discover London before, during and after the Great Fire of 1666 in an interactive exhibition marking the 350th anniversary of this infamous disaster.Explore the evidence to find out how the fire started and spread, and discover the personal stories of Londoners who were there at the time.

Get up close to rarely seen 17th century artefacts and learn how the city we know today rose from the ashes.” Read my review here.

Emma Hamilton: Seduction and Celebrity, National Maritime Museum, London, 3 Nov 2016 – 17 Apr 2017

“The story of Emma Hamilton is one of female power and achievement in a man’s world, against all odds. Born into poverty in 1765, she rose to be a muse for famous artists, an influential ambassador’s wife, a European cultural icon and Nelson’s mistress – before facing prison and dying in destitution.

Emma Hamilton: Seduction and Celebrity traces her spectacular career from rags to riches and back again through over 200 objects, great paintings by George Romney, Sir Joshua Reynolds and Sir Thomas Lawrence, and heartfelt letters between Emma and her lovers. The exhibition also explores the obstacles and social barriers for a woman of her time in the public eye, many of which still resonate today.”

Electricity: the Spark of Life, Wellcome Collection, London, 23 Feb – 25 Jun 2017 

“This major exhibition will show how this invisible yet vital force is fundamental to human life and has captivated inventors, scientists and artists alike for centuries. It will feature three new commissions by international artists John Gerrard, Camille Henrot and Bill Morrison, and bring together over 100 objects from ancient spark-inducing amber and early electro-static generators to radiographs, photographs, paintings, models and films.

Electricity: The spark of life will cover three core themes – generation, supply and consumption. ‘Generation: The Great Invisible’ will show how the history of our enduring fascination with electricity can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and our early encounters with natural wonders, such as a burst of lightning or the mesmerising sight of the Aurora Borealis. It will consider how the late 18th century pioneers and philosophers looked to nature to reveal the physical presence of static electricity, and began to unravel its secrets. This included the study of electric fish, the complex bioelectrical experiments undertaken by Galvani (1737 – 1798), and the development of some of the very first devices designed to generate an electric charge.”

Painting the Theatre: Garrick in Action, Bowes Museum, County Durham, 8 Apr – 9 Jul 2017 

“This special display will celebrate England’s eighteenth-century best-known actor David Garrick (1717-1779) to mark the 300th anniversary of his birth in 2017.”

Robots, The Science Museum, London, 8 Feb – 3 Sept 2017 

“From the dawn of mechanised human forms to cutting-edge technology fresh from the lab, Robots reveals the astonishing 500-year quest to make machines human.

Focusing on why they exist rather than on how they work, our blockbuster exhibition explores the ways robots mirror humanity and the insights they offer into our ambitions, desires and position in a rapidly changing world.

The incredible Silver Swan – on loan from the Bowes Museum in County Durham – will be on display in the Robots exhibition from 8 February to 23 March 2017. This life-size clockwork automaton is the only one of its kind in the world.”