The sheer historical scope of Writers Revealed might initially seem a daunting prospect for visitors to this unprecedented exhibition at HOTA. Covering six centuries, it presents manuscripts, letters, illustrations and rare editions from many of the most influential authors in English literature.
All pieces are taken from the British Library and the National Portrait Gallery, London. Among the items on display is a manuscript from the 16th-century poet Thomas Wyatt (the oldest piece in the exhibition), a portrait of Shakespeare believed to be the only one painted in his lifetime, and Jane Austen’s handwritten notes about her 1814 novel Mansfield Park. The extraordinary artefacts keep coming in an exhibition that was several years in the making.
“I’m particularly excited to see the handwritten draft for Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf, shown alongside the iconic portrait of the author by George Charles Beresford,” says Yarmila Alfonzetti, who oversaw the organisation of the exhibition at HOTA. “The handwritten manuscript for Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë is paired with a portrait of the Brontë sisters which was long thought to be lost, but was found folded on top of a wardrobe.”
Writers Revealed also embraces contemporary British authors, such as novelists Zadie Smith and Sir Kazuo Ishiguro, and the late dub poet and activist Benjamin Zephaniah. And such is the imaginative way the exhibition is presented, any notion of “not knowing where to start” is quickly quashed.
“Writers Revealed reflects the fact that we live in a diverse world, made richer by the inclusion of a multitude of voices,” says Alfonzetti. “Rather than present the exhibition chronologically, it explores the lives of more than 70 writers through themes such as fame, censorship and social justice. This means that you can explore the work of Benjamin Zephaniah alongside the life of William Blake. These groupings link writers across time.”
Writers Revealed
HOTA
On now—3 August
This article was originally published in the May/June 2025 print edition of Art Guide Australia.
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