Below Stairs: 400 Years of Servants' Portraits (E) - Tapa blanda

"Below Stairs" is a study of servant portraiture in Britain and is illustrated with works by Hogarth, Gainsborough and Stubbs. Continuing the examination of traditional domestic life explored in the films "Gosford Park" and "Remains of the Day", "Below Stairs" is also the subject of a BBC Four documentary. Featuring portraits of all ranks of servant the book illustrates the shifting organisation of households through the centuries, and the highly complex relationships between employers and employees. Traditionally, portraiture in Britain has concentrated on recording the upper classes and the celebrated. Instead, "Below Stairs" explores the representation of the servant, be it in a grand or modest household, in the country or in the town, at the royal courts or at colleges and clubs. This groundbreaking selection of paintings and photographs tells a fascinating story about power, class and human relationships spanning over 400 years of social and economic history.

Anne French is a freelance art historian and curator. She was previously Keeper of Fine Art at the Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Acting Curator at Kenwood House. Giles Waterfield is an independent fine art curator, art historian and novelist. Former director of the Dulwich Picture Gallery he is currently Director of the Attingham Summer School and Royal Collection Studies.