Sir William and Lady Hamilton: A Dual Portrait in Naples

The Gallerie d'Italia in Naples presents a major exhibition on Sir William and Lady Hamilton, curated by Francesco Leone and Fernando Mazzocca. The show reimagines the couple's modern, Enlightenment-era lives through paintings, artifacts, and immersive design. Sir William Hamilton, British ambassador to the Bourbon court from 1764 to 1800, was a collector, vulcanologist, and writer. Lady Emma Hamilton, born Amy Lyon in 1765, rose from humble origins to become a celebrated beauty and performer of 'attitudes.' The exhibition features portraits by George Romney and Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein, along with landscapes, porcelain, and volcanic specimens. It highlights Emma's affair with Admiral Horatio Nelson and Sir William's decision to leave her impoverished after his death in 1803. The show runs at Gallerie d'Italia in Naples.