- 12 February 2019
Nicholas Hilliard: Life of an Artist by Elizabeth Goldring follows Nicholas Hilliard’s long and remarkable life (c. 1547–1619) from the West Country to the heart of the Elizabethan and Jacobean courts. It showcases new archival research and stunning images, many reproduced in colour for the first time. Hilliard’s portraits—some no larger than a watch-face—have decisively shaped perceptions of the appearances and personalities of many key figures in one of the most exciting, if volatile, periods in British history. His sitters included Elizabeth I, James I, and Mary, Queen of Scots; explorers Sir Francis Drake and Sir Walter Raleigh; and members of the emerging middle class from which he himself hailed. Hilliard counted the Medici, the Valois, the Habsburgs, and the Bourbons among his Continental European patrons and admirers.
Nicholas Hilliard: Life of an Artist is published to mark the 400th anniversary of Hilliard’s death and is funded for by the Paul Mellon Centre and printed by Yale University Press. Click here for more information and purchase details.
Further reading
- Nicholas Hilliard's First Encounter with Elizabeth 1: Identifying the Moment, an article written by Elizabeth Goldring for PMC Notes.