The Notorious Case of Lady Frances Howard

Undergraduate: Dana Rodriguez

Faculty Advisor: Tatiana String
Department: Art

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The Ackland Museum of Art possesses an undated print of Lady Frances Howard and her second husband, Robert Carr. There is little information known about this work of art, and this research questions which artist(s) created the print, during what time, and what function the print held. I argue that the print was made in 1615 and can be attributed to Renold Estrack. I exam how her two trials led to her rise in fame and subsequent public analysis, the print¿¿¿s production and other artistic renderings, and the relationship with the court of James I. The artist created a uniquely constructed printed image that illustrated the popular and provocative story of Lady Frances Howard. Howard, a seventeenth century celebrity, was surrounded by stories of sexual disloyalty and empowerment, murder by poison, political ploys, witchcraft and imprisonment. Her story was an affair driven by society¿¿¿s desire to unearth the reason for such amoral behavior. In this print, the artist combined references of femininity and power to show the product of controversial personal and political circumstances; a message that satiated the public¿¿¿s desires to fathom the nature behind a woman¿¿¿s amorality.