The Governess
London, United Kingdom
Victoria and Albert Museum
About Victoria and Albert Museum, London
1844 (painted) 1845 (exhibited)
Richard Redgrave (1804-1888)
FA.168[O]
Oil on canvas
Height: 71.1 cm estimate, Width: 91.5 cm estimate
United Kingdom
The position of governess was one of the few professions open to middle-class women of modest means, but it was often a lonely and difficult life because the social status of a governess was ambiguous. She was not a servant in the usual sense but nor was she on equal terms with the family who employed her. Here, the young woman holds a letter which has obviously stirred memories of home. It may be news of a death in her family - letters or cards with black borders were used to announce deaths. Redgrave had a personal interest in representing the life of a governess: his sister Jane was a governess and died young.
Victoria and Albert Museum "The Governess" in "Sharing History", Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://sharinghistory.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;AWE;uk;139;en
Prepared by: Victoria and Albert Museum
MWNF Working Number: UK 139
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