Luminary: Portrait of a Surgeon’s Daughter tells the story of a forgotten woman who resided on the Esplanade, Scarborough, during the late nineteenth century. Mary Craven was one of four daughters of retired Hull surgeon Robert Martin Craven, who married his wife Jane at St Mary’s Church, Scarborough, in 1795.

    

St Martin-on-the-Hill stands as a memorial to Mary’s father, who died in 1859. She chiefly funded the church, and after its consecration in 1863, she enriched it further with designs by the Pre-Raphaelite artists. 

 

The textile-based art installation reflects the enigmatic Mary Craven’s lost and hidden stories and is presented in the style of an early photographic studio. Although there was a growing obsession with photographic portraiture across all social classes during the time, and the famous Sarony’s studio was located next door, not one photograph of Mary has yet been found.