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November 2019
And So to Vauxhall, Music and Culture at the Celebrated Gardens
And So to Vauxhall, Music and Culture at the Celebrated Gardens A lecture by Peter Medhurst. Although upward of a hundred pleasure gardens are known to have thrived in 18th century London, it was Vauxhall, with its walks, triumphal arches, statues and reputation for scandal, that became the firm favourite with Londoners and visitors alike. For the price of a shilling, patrons could stroll through the groves accompanied by the voices of nature, or – if they wished – could…
Find out more »December 2019
Christmas at Covent Garden: 300 Years of Christmas Shows
Christmas at Covent Garden: 300 Years of Christmas Shows A lecture by Sarah Lenton. The London Christmas season was invented at Covent Garden. The first theatre on the site was the home of Harlequin and Columbine and 300 years on Harlequin and Columbine are still dancing in “The Nutcracker”. Most of what we now consider to be quintessential pantomime - principal boy, fairy tales, transformation scenes and the dame, can be traced back to the operas and ballets put on…
Find out more »January 2020
Cracking Glass
Cracking Glass - a lecture by Mark Hill An overview of Britain’s ‘Big Four’ postwar glass companies, comprising Whitefriars, King’s Lynn (Wedgwood), Caithness and Dartington. As well as company and designer histories, special slides examine, compare and contrast ‘Good, Better, Best’ examples from each company. The emergence of these factories is put into context and major influences behind them are discussed. The current glut of Whitefriars fakes are covered, including tips on how to spot them.
Find out more »February 2020
What Really Happened at the Yellow House in Arles in 1888
What Really Happened at the Yellow House in Arles in 1888? - a lecture by Julian Halsby In October 1888 Paul Gauguin arrived in Arles to stay at the Yellow House with Vincent van Gogh. At first the friendship worked well and the two artists went out to paint in the countryside around Arles. They also painted side by side on the Alyscamps, an old Roman burial ground, and even shared a model, both painting Madame Genoux ‘The Arlesienne’. However…
Find out more »March 2020
Raphael :A Master in the Making
Raphael: A Master in the Making -a lecture by Sian Walters Raphael is often referred to as one of the three giants of the High Renaissance in Italy, alongside Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, yet his fame and position in the canon of art history may seem hard to explain. He made no discoveries like those of his celebrated rivals: although undoubtedly a draughtsman of exceptional talent he made no great progress in the fields of anatomy, science and construction…
Find out more »April 2020
Arts and Crafts of Mexico, Past and Present
Arts and Crafts of Mexico, Past and Present -a lecture by Chloe Sayer Few countries in the world offer such a rich and varied cultural heritage as Mexico. Before the Spanish Conquest of 1519, numerous civilisations rose and fell. Their once great cities were peopled by muralists, sculptors in stone, ceramic artists, feather- and gold-workers, jewellers, weavers and painters of sacred books. Today the descendants of the Maya and the Aztecs retain their sense of colour and design. Contemporary folk…
Find out more »May 2020
Inspiration – Artists and their Muses
Inspiration - Artists and Their Muses -a lecture by Alexander Epps The complex relationship between artist and muse has been the inspiration for some of the most significant works of art of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Discover Rossetti’s Pre-Raphaelite stunners; Picasso’s weeping woman, the mother of American modernism and many more - muses as different as the artists themselves.
Find out more »June 2020
Twentieth Century Sculpture
Twentieth Century Sculpture a lecture by Linda Smith This lecture traces the development of sculpture in the twentieth century, from large lumps of marble at one end to unmade beds at the other, and explains how and why this trajectory happened. Key developments like Cubism, Primitivism, Surrealism and Pop Art all affected sculpture, and are carefully explained with a wide range of illustrations.Twentieth Century Sculpture
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