Nell Gwyn Stripped Back

She was one of the first women to abandon her modesty to advance her career And more than three centuries later, Nell Gwyn is turning heads again after researchers discovered this topless portrait that had been ‘lost’ for 50 years. The risqué painting of the actress, who became the mistress of King Charles II, will be exhibited from tomorrow.

While modern stars might strike racy poses for men’s magazines, Nell and her contemporaries stripped off for paintings to be exhibited in the King’s court. The 17th-century artistic convention to indicate the subject was a courtesan or actress is now known as the "nipple slip" – but this detail of a portrait by Simon Verelst goes somewhat further. "This one is much more daring, it shows her practically naked to the waist," said Gill Perry, curator of the show, which opens at the National Portrait Gallery in London on Thursday. "We are absolutely thrilled to have it. It's exciting."

However, the result wasn’t to everyone’s tastes, with Gwyn's modesty being covered – probably by the Victorians – by the painting of clothes on to Nell to make her look more respectable. Its true subject was only revealed during conservation. Perry said: "There was the classical tradition of naked women, so in the 17th century you could still claim to be reworking those traditions, although everyone knew that when it was a secular subject, it meant something more."

The portrait came to light in the 1940s when it was bought, probably for its frame, without the owner knowing who it depicted. Experts lost track of it in the 1960s and feared it was missing until they were contacted this year by a family who found it among their heirlooms. Restored to its original condition, it is one of only a handful of surviving portraits of Nell, who was among the first actresses in Britain when she made her theatre debut in 1664, aged 14. Just three years later, in a performance of The Mad Couple, the beautiful, provocative actress was rolling merrily across the stage, her underwear on display for all to see. It was one of earliest of Gwyn’s many performances that would attract a rich suitor (this time Charles Sackville, Lord Buckhurst), but throughout her life Gwyn was to garner great reviews and a great many lovers.

It was the Restoration of Charles II in 1660 that finally allowed women on the English stage. Until the 17th century boys had played all the female parts on stage but over the next hundred years Gwyn and her sister actresses overcame prejudice, graduating from scandalous novelties to highly paid professionals skilled at dance, singing, tragedy and comedy. They became hugely influential, changing the way plays were written, and helping to shape theatrical innovations, such as ballet and opera. The subject of gossip and intrigue, they were painted by the leading artists of the day. "Not only was she a good actress she was incredibly astute at manipulating her image and abilities," said Perry. Deft networking and a long affair with the king helped Gwyn become one of the first celebrities. "She became extraordinarily popular. She had a very bold character, she was witty and outspoken and she had a charisma."

Long before Sarah Siddons made the profession respectable, an actress’s status was still highly ambiguous. In the 17th century women led circumscribed lives within the home; respectable married women went out masked with their hair covered, so any woman who flaunted herself in public was seen as available. It took hundreds of years for this association to be broken, particularly as many of the actresses did not hesitate to supplement their income with a rich lover or two. It became a status symbol among King Charles’s louche court to keep a famous actress – the King had Gwyn, and his glamorous cousin Prince Rupert of the Rhine kept and loved the beautiful Margaret Hughes for many years.

Gwyn was the earliest actress superstar and – in the ultimate testimony to her fame – is still a household name today. 'Pretty, witty’ Nell, as a star-struck Samuel Pepys called her, was dragged up in a Covent Garden back street by her drunken mother and began selling oranges and sweetmeats at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane as a child. She was trained by an early lover, the actor Charles Hart. Pepys, a keen theatre-goer, judged her a poor tragic actress, but admired her comic talents, particularly when she displayed her pretty legs in breeches. He hung a saucy nude pin-up of her as Cupid over his office desk in the Admiralty.

With her comic talent and resilience, Gwyn combined the role of royal mistress with the licence of a court fool for the King, whom she impudently dubbed her Charles III – her third lover of that name. Her status as royal mistress from 1668 added to her celebrity fire-power, as audiences flocked and playwrights, including John Dryden, fell over themselves to write parts for her.

Portraits of Gwyn are notably erotic – more so than those of any other actress: satin pulled through beads, a tumble of petticoat and shift, a nipple peeping above a hint of lace, a lamb tucked under one arm as a living modesty piece. She was painted often, particularly by Lely. Later pictures include her two sons by the King, sometimes flying above her as knowing cherubs. Gywn's fame was helped by mass reproduction of her image and the admiration of people such as Pepys. But she also played a role. "I'm sure she would have encouraged all the visibility and publicity that circled around her," said Perry.

She is thought to have sat for this revealing painting between 1680 and 1685. Dr Lucy Peltz from the National Portrait Gallery, where the painting will be on display until January, said: "Nell Gwyn was the forerunner of our modern celebrity culture. This portrait reflects the fact that a female actress had to use her sexuality and charm to promote herself. But Nell Gwyn had a lot going on. She well respected – a talented actress with creative flair. She was also clearly very strategic, and it’s no coincidence that she ended up in the King’s bed. Being an actress allowed a certain amount of social mobility for a woman."

Gwyn has been portrayed over a dozen times in film and television, and on the last three occassions by actresses in varying staights of undress...

Television Series: England My England
Release Date: 1995
Actress: Lucy Speed
Video Clip Credit: Angler12















Mediafire


Television Series: Charles II: The Power & The Passion (S01E04)
Release Date: December 2003
Actress: Emma Pierson
Video Clip Credit: GFScans









MediaFire


Television Series: Stage Beauty
Release Date: December 2004
Actress: Zoe Tapper
Video Clip Credit: Nude Celebs










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