Bess: Hardwick Hall Exhibition Design

Bold coral-pink serif lettering spells BESS across a tightly cropped Elizabethan oil portrait, Bess of Hardwick's auburn hair and single visible eye emerging between the letters. Exhibition identity designed by Cafeteria for Bess: Unframing the Family at Hardwick Hall, National Trust.

Hardwick Hall is one of the National Trust’s most extraordinary properties. Bess: Unframing the Family marks the return to display of portraits that have undergone major conservation work. Far beyond materials and technique, these paintings carry new stories about identity, legacy and what family has meant across five centuries. We created a visual identity and interpretation suite to bring those stories to life.

Key services

Visual expression
Exhibition planning
Copy editing
Production

Wayfinding poster on a wooden easel inside Hardwick Hall, reading BESS / Unframing the Family / This Way, with a cropped portrait detail of Bess beneath the title. The historic stone-flagged interior and carved pilasters frame the sign. Wayfinding design by Cafeteria for the National Trust.

Tightly cropped detail from an Elizabethan oil portrait showing three strands of pearl necklace crossing a black velvet bodice, with a pale hand resting beneath a small lace cuff. The forensic intimacy of the crop reflects the exhibition's investigation theme. From the Bess: Unframing the Family exhibition at Hardwick Hall, National Trust.

The roofline of Hardwick Hall glimpsed through summer foliage, its distinctive stone parapets bearing the repeated ES monogram of Elizabeth Shrewsbury — Bess of Hardwick's initials, carved into the skyline of the house she built. Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire, National Trust.

Three fabric banners suspended from timber rods on a pale interior wall at Hardwick Hall. The left panel reads DYNASTIC AMBITION in vertical red text on deep crimson. The centre panel pairs a cropped portrait of Bess with a red biographical text block and three heraldic cinquefoil motifs. A partially visible third panel carries a family tree headed BESS AND HER FAMILY. Interpretation system designed by Cafeteria for the National Trust.

Bess, front and centre

With her 500th anniversary approaching in 2027, Bess – the formidable Tudor matriarch who founded a dynasty that shaped English history – deserved to be the star. Her enigmatic smile and pearls are instantly recognisable. Pairing them with the towering letterforms of her name created something that feels both intimate and monumental. A palette of pinks and reds speaks to her power, and doubles as a distinctive wayfinding thread through the house.

The Sister Sister interpretation panel on a wooden easel in the tapestry-hung withdrawing chamber at Hardwick Hall, alongside a large Elizabethan portrait of Mary Cavendish, Countess of Shrewsbury, set against floor-to-ceiling verdure tapestries depicting a standing armoured figure. Exhibition interpretation designed by Cafeteria for Bess: Unframing the Family, National Trust.

The ornamental walled garden at Hardwick Hall in summer, with a blue-painted gate set into a stone wall topped with heraldic finials and carved strapwork. White flowering shrubs and mixed herbaceous borders fill the foreground, with a large Cedar of Lebanon rising behind the wall. Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire, National Trust.

Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury, oil on panel, attributed to Rowland Lockey, 1596, displayed on a gilt wooden easel in a richly furnished room at Hardwick Hall, spot-lit against tapestried walls and leaded windows. An interpretation panel on a second easel to the right carries close-up portrait details and exhibition text. Part of the Bess: Unframing the Family exhibition, Hardwick Hall, National Trust. Exhibition interpretation designed by Cafeteria.

The High Great Chamber at Hardwick Hall, looking the full length of the room towards a large Elizabethan portrait of Queen Elizabeth I backlit by the tall windows at the far end. Tapestried walls, a richly carved red state bed canopy, period furniture and an ornate plasterwork ceiling fill the space. Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire, National Trust — one of the best-preserved Elizabethan interiors in England.

Pale pink and apricot climbing roses trained against a weathered limestone garden wall at Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire. The gardens surrounding the Elizabethan house built by Bess of Hardwick, National Trust.

A vast Cedar of Lebanon dominates the grounds of Hardwick Hall, with the roofless ruins of Hardwick Old Hall — the earlier house on the same site where Bess of Hardwick was born — visible to the left, and the entrance gateway to Hardwick Hall to the right. Hardwick, Derbyshire, National Trust.

A fresh look at familiar faces

Conservation work on the portraits uncovered new evidence about how they were made, altered and understood over time — reframing what these paintings mean and who they show. Our visual identity reflects that spirit of discovery: tightly cropped portrait details paired with clean, modern type create a forensic sensibility that speaks directly to the exhibition’s three themes of creation, investigation and conservation.

The A Splendid Survivor display unit in the Bess: Unframing the Family exhibition at Hardwick Hall. A deep crimson freestanding panel holds a gilt-framed oil portrait of Bess of Hardwick alongside a printed ultraviolet photograph labelled 'Ultraviolet', revealing the painting's underdrawing. An interpretation panel to the right covers the portrait's creation, investigation and conservation. A speaker unit on a white plinth provides audio content. Exhibition design by Cafeteria for the National Trust.

Extreme close-up of the portrait of William Cavendish, 2nd Earl of Devonshire, during conservation treatment, showing two versions of the same eye side by side — one before and one after cleaning — with a cotton swab resting against the panel surface. The craquelure and paint layers beneath are clearly visible. Conservation photography from the Bess: Unframing the Family exhibition, Hardwick Hall, National Trust.

A visitor passes in motion blur before an Elizabethan portrait of William Cavendish, 2nd Earl of Devonshire, hung on a pale wall at Hardwick Hall. To the left, an interpretation panel headed VALUABLE TRUTH carries conservation photography and exhibition text. To the right, a second panel headed BEHIND THE POSE interprets a further portrait. Exhibition interpretation designed by Cafeteria for Bess: Unframing the Family, National Trust.

A printed interpretation panel headed TWO WILLIAMS on a wooden easel in a tapestried room at Hardwick Hall. The panel covers two portraits of men named William — Bess of Hardwick's second husband Sir William Cavendish and her favourite son William Cavendish, 1st Earl of Devonshire — with sections on creation, investigation and conservation, including findings from dendrochronology dating of the oak panels. Exhibition interpretation designed by Cafeteria for Bess: Unframing the Family, National Trust.

Leaning into the constraints

Working within a Grade I listed building demands a particular kind of creativity — low lighting, limited fixing opportunities, rooms that range from the intimate to the vast. We worked closely with the Hardwick Hall team to organise content and deliver an interpretation system within these constraints. We also offered intriguing copy lines designed to build a narrative of reveal and discovery. The result is a scheme that works across every output and gives the client a strong marketing platform that will evolve with the exhibition over the next two to three years.

Two fabric banners suspended from a timber rod in a room at Hardwick Hall. The left panel carries the BESS / Unframing the Family exhibition identity with a cropped portrait detail. The right panel, in deep crimson, poses the questions "How would you represent your family?" and "What does family mean to you?" with three heraldic cinquefoil motifs between them. To the left, a pinboard holds visitor response cards. A visitor passes in motion blur to the right. Exhibition design by Cafeteria for Bess: Unframing the Family, National Trust.

A visitor pins a handwritten response card to a diamond-latticed display board mounted on a deep crimson wall at Hardwick Hall. To the left, a white wall panel poses questions about Bess's family portraits and invites visitors to share what they would like to find out. A small shelf below holds blank cards for responses. The lattice pattern echoes the leaded windows of the historic house. Exhibition design by Cafeteria for Bess: Unframing the Family, National Trust.

A arched opening cut through a dense yew hedge at Hardwick Hall, framing a view into a wildflower meadow and orchard beyond. The grounds of Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire, National Trust.

Close-up of an original Elizabethan leaded diamond-pane window at Hardwick Hall, looking out across the lawns and grounds. The ancient glass distorts the view beyond. Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire, National Trust — one of the finest surviving Elizabethan houses in England.

“
The Cafeteria team were fantastic to work with. They carefully listened to what we wanted and sensitively considered the historic environment in their design. The result was a design scheme that not only captured the essence of the exhibition but was also sympathetic to Elizabethan interiors at Hardwick Hall.

Liz Waring – Property Curator

Colophon

Curators:
Liz Waring &
Elena Williams

Exhibition Photography:
Reuben Brown