A NEW art exhibition exploring Thomas Hardy’s early relationship with Emma Gifford has opened at their home at Max Gate in Dorchester.

Emma and Thomas Hardy: Identity Love Loss and Bereavement is a series of images created by the visual artist Susan R Hughes.

Susan had always been fascinated by the portrait of Emma Gifford, currently on display at Dorset County Museum.

It is one of the few images of Emma as a young woman that remains in the large Hardy archive held there.

Susan made much use of this archive and used the portrait of Emma as a starting point to explore the early Hardy relationship, in their own words, com-bining Hardy’s love poems with Emma’s reflective writing, draw-ings of one another, and artefacts reflecting a happier time.

Jennifer Davis, visitor services manager for Hardy Country and Clouds Hill at the National Trust, said: “Visitors to Hardy’s home are always fascinated by Emma’s story and about their life together at Max Gate. We are really excited about this new exhibition in the study where Hardy wrote Tess Of The D’Urbervilles, which will tell their story in a new way.”

Included in the exhibition is the artist’s research sketchbook, which shows the initial development of ideas, taken from the archive, and the process of combining all the different elements discovered.

Max Gate opens five days a week, between 11am and 5pm Wednesday to Sunday from March till November. Call 01305 262538.

Admission for National Trust members is free and costs £6.50 for adults and £3.50 for children.