Mrs. Thomas Pelham (Annetta, daughter of Thomas Bridges, wife of Thomas Pelham), John Vanderbank

Exhibition Label:
"Empire of Things," 2016, Kate Meyer
This unconventional portrait, depicting an elite English beauty just after her marriage in 1725, represents the real and imaginary ties that connected early 18th-century England to the Ottoman Empire. Anneta Pelham was the wife of a prominent merchant whose frequent travels to Constantinople earned him the nickname “Turk” Pelham. During the pre-Colonial period, English merchants working in the Ottoman Near East served a diplomatic role, relaying political and military intelligence and facilitating the exchange of ideas. By donning an ornately embroidered Turkish jacket and turban-like headpiece strung with pearls, Anneta Pelham advertises her husband’s connections to the East. She engages the viewer with her supercilious gaze, her lips twisting into a subtle smile. This woman’s striking sensuality—her relaxed pose and the tactility of the lustrous velvet jacket comingling with the creamy softness of her décolleté—alludes to attractions that western Europeans ascribed to Ottoman women, who were becoming subjects of literary fantasy.

Exhibition Label:
"Empire of Things," 2013, Kate Meyer
This unconventional portrait, depicting an elite English beauty just after her marriage in 1725, represents the real and imaginary ties that connected early 18th-century England to the Ottoman Empire. Annetta Pelham was the wife of a prominent merchant whose frequent travels to Constantinople earned him the nickname “Turk” Pelham. During the pre-Colonial period, English merchants working in the Ottoman Near East served a diplomatic role, relaying political and military intelligence and facilitating the exchange of ideas. By donning an ornately embroidered Turkish jacket and turban-like headpiece strung with pearls, Annetta Pelham advertises her husband’s connections to the East. She engages the viewer with her supercilious gaze, her lips twisting into a subtle smile. This woman’s striking sensuality—her relaxed pose and the tactility of the lustrous velvet jacket comingling with the creamy softness of her décolleté—allude to attractions that western Europeans ascribed to Ottoman women, who were becoming subjects of literary fantasy.

Archive Label 1999:
Mrs. Pelham wears a Turkish-inspired costume, popular in many portraits of the period. After the Turkish empire opened trade relations with the West early in the 18th century, many Europeans, including Mrs. Pelham's family, traveled to Constantinople. Some of these travelers brought back Turkish clothing, which helped to popularize the fashions.

As can be seen in this painting, the Western adaptation of the costume emphasized notions of Turkey as exotic and sensuous. Typical of these interpretations, Mrs. Pelham poses in a flirtatious manner, drawing attention to her low-cut smock. Her costume recalls Turkish clothing with its richly embroidered robe that fits tightly around her bust. She completes her outfit with an ermine sash buttoned to her robe and a turban-like hat decorated with pearls.

Actual Turkish clothing was more conservative. Women wore similar outfits but modestly buttoned their smocks at the neck. While outside the home, women completely covered themselves with outer garments, exposing only their eyes.