Lautrec was born into a family of southern aristocrats. His physical disabilities did not dissuade him from pursuing an artist's career that required him to live and work in Paris. Lautrec’s painting style significantly contributed towards the development of modern poster design.

Grayson Perry is one of Britain's best known contemporary artists, and one of the most successful. Often controversial, he tackles difficult subjects in a poignant yet witty manner and holds a mirror up to modern society.

The Frome Hoard of 52,503 Roman coins, found in April 2010, is the largest cache of Roman coins ever found in Britain in a single pot.  The discovery enables us to carry out a major appraisal of Carausius (AD 286-93), Britain’s ‘forgotten emperor’, whose history can be told through some fine examples of medallic art.

Fees for this lecture go directly to the Portable Antiquities.

The buildings are known for their important roles in the religious life of the country. What is less well-known is the story of the many works of art that are held within the churches. We explore both churches and look in detail at some of the many items on display, from medieval paintings to 21st-century video presentations.

While Moore’s reputation today is derived largely from his sculpture, drawing provided a constant vehicle for some of his most experimental and expressive endeavours. Indeed, Sir Henry Moore had acquired an international reputation for his sketches in the 1940s.

By taking just ten of Picasso’s paintings, this lecture will examine the artist’s life and attempt to explain the evolution of his painting styles through a career that spanned more than seventy years.

At Christmas, we are surrounded by plants. This festive talk puts the record straight and rewrites the zoocentric song replacing partridges with poinsettias, and maids with mistletoe.

Aware of the inegalitarian nature of concert life during the late nineteenth century, Sir Henry Wood set about making music available to the man in the street by founding the Promenade Concerts at Queen's Hall in 1895 with the impresario Robert Newman. 

The lecture will focus on the artist’s period in Provence where he painted some of his most recognisable paintings. Known as his brightest and most expressive paintings, this is also the period in which he became ill and cut off his ear. 

AGM at 6pm followed by Andy Warhol at 6.30pm

Creator of iconic pop images of Marilyn, Jackie and Elvis, soup can and coke bottle, and coiner of the expression ‘15 minutes of fame’ Warhol’s own fame continues long after his death, as Prince of Pop Art. 

Whether drawing duchesses or portraying princes, John Singer Sargent (1856–1925) was high society’s leading portraitist. Flaunting a consummate technique, his luxurious canvases mirrored his subjects’ wealth. Yet beneath the dazzling veneer of works such as Madame X, The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit and Lady Agnew of Lochnaw lurks a much rawer world by far. Sargent certainly scandalised Parisian society and the city’s Salon with his frank depictions of human sexuality, yet he was even more modern than they might have feared.

We are still living amongst the infrastructure created by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in the 19 th century. He changed the face of the English landscape with his ground-breaking projects including railways, bridges, tunnels, ships, and grand buildings such as the magnificent Paddington Station. He merged art with engineering and science and was a pioneer and a revolutionary. And he was brilliant. We'll look at the man, his background, his work, and his legacy.

The discovery of the grave of King Richard III in Leicester raised many fascinating new questions. The severe scoliosis exhibited by the skeleton revealed that the twisted physique of Shakespeare’s ‘Black Legend’ was based in fact. But how could a diminutive person, suffering from a significant spinal condition, have become a skilled practitioner of the knightly fighting arts? How could he have worn armour and fought in three major battles? What would his armour have looked like?

When Diaghilev created ballet in the west in the early twentieth century, he brought extraordinary revolutionary energy from Russia. By bringing together talented artists of different disciplines; choreographers, dancers, musicians, designers and painters; Fokine, Nijinsky, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Picasso and Coco Chanel to name but a few, Diaghilev fused the latest in art, music and dance in spectacles that dazzled and astonished audiences around the world. The dream Diaghilev created of dance joining hands with the other creative disciplines to create a total work of art changed the course of ballet forever.

A journey through the 60s in music and images, following the Beatles from the Hamburg Reeperbahn in 1960 to Abbey Road in 1969. The band was always fascinated by the visual arts - the ‘fifth Beatle’, Stuart Sutcliffe, was a much better painter than he was a bass player - and they also learned very early on that artists and designers could help promote their image and their music. Their rise to global fame was aided and recorded by an impressive roster of photographers, including Astrid Kirchherr, Bob Freeman, Robert Whitaker, Angus McBean and Linda McCartney.

From the moment the 25-year-old Handel arrived in London, in 1710, he was welcomed onto the English musical scene with open arms, and for the next 30 years drew a steady income by composing Italian operas. When operatic taste waned in the 1730s, Handel turned his skills to the writing of oratorio, and works such as Messiah, Theodore and Solomon instantly appealed to a national sense of religious piety. Through keyboard music, song and digital images, Peter Medhurst presents a lively account of Handel's musical adventures in London.

This lecture explores an artist whose work, inventiveness, and ability to catch the zeitgeist is still admired a century after her bold 'Bizarre' wares were launched in 1927. These Art Deco masterpieces are the products that most vividly signify Clarice Cliff's legacy. The Royal Academy barred women from accessing the full training and privileges of their male counterparts, but the pottery industry was one that had traditionally offered female artists the opportunities to excel.

William Morris was a man of prolific talents and herculean energy.  He was by turns an artist, a poet, a manufacturer, a conservationist and a revolutionary socialist, and he was also a designer of stained glass, interior decoration, embroideries, furniture, illustrated books and painted tiles.  But it is as a designer of repeating patterns that Morris is probably best remembered today. He was a one-man pattern-making phenomenon, creating over 50 wallpapers and 60 printed and woven textiles in just 25 years.

This lecture introduces some of Japan’s most famous gardens and provides a context for understanding the principles of Japanese garden design as it has evolved through the ages. The Japanese love of nature and the changing seasons has manifested itself in the subject matter of paintings and in the intimate and grand-scale gardens surrounding aristocratic palaces and Buddhist temples as well as Zen-inspired dry landscape gardens with their strikingly symbolic content.

AGM 6pm followed by The Discovery of Paris at 6.30 pm

See a wonderful range of beautiful drawings, prints and watercolours by such artists as Turner, Girtin, Bonington and Thomas Shotter Boys. Did you know that an enormous building in the River Seine pumped water to households in the centre of the city? Or that an army of women washed clothes in the river near Notre-Dame Cathedral?

In the two centuries since they were removed from the Parthenon by Lord Elgin, the meaning and significance of the ‘Elgin marbles’ has changed dramatically.  From architectural decoration to disputed cultural objects this lecture looks at the response to them over their time in Britain, from the controversy over their purchase to the current debate surrounding the restitution of the marbles to the new Acropolis Museum in Athens.

When Japan opened its doors to the west in the mid-19th century, many of these woodblock prints by Hokusai, Hiroshige, and other artists were introduced to Europe for the first time and received with a great enthusiasm by the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artists in Paris.  This lecture traces the history of Ukiyo-e with examples from famous masters.

Howard Smith’s lectures have a reputation for stunning graphics - this lecture is no exception and also has vintage film of RMS Olympic with the building and launch.  Here is the fascinating story of these luxurious liners with their breath-taking interiors.

Possibly the greatest figure painter of the second half of the 20th century.  This talk will look at his unforgettable paintings, many of which have a penetrative scrutiny that is almost the visual equivalent of his grandfather Sigmund’s analysis of patients, as well as his relations with his models and fellow artists.

This is a fascinating area of 19th century painting which is still not fully appreciated nor understood.  Many art historians have ignored the Symbolists believing that their art led to a dead end, but in fact Symbolism became a major factor in 20th century Surrealism and the Dada Movement.

One of the best-known tile interiors in Britain is the ceramic extravaganza by W.J. Neatby (1860-1910) in the Meat Hall in Harrods Department Store.  He was one of the few designers to work in the Art Nouveau style in England to create artworks that are still a visual feast for those interested in art and design in the years around 1900

In 1882 Gertrude Jekyll wrote a short but seminal article in The Garden in which she urged the readers to “remember that in a garden we are painting a picture”.  This lecture considers Jekyll’s principles in conjunction with contemporary work of the likes of Turner, Monet, Rothko, Jackson Pollock.

Whether we choose to admit it or not, British art has been enriched by the presence of artists from elsewhere for many centuries.  Artists to be discussed include Hans Holbein, Anthony van Dyck, James McNeill Whistler, Lucian Freud and Frank Auerbach, Chris Ofili and Yinka Shonibare

The great work of women artists in the Dutch, French and English Enlightenment, such as Leyster, Beale, Anne Vallayer-Coster;  the modernist era with Cassatt, Morisot, Sonia Delaunay, O’Keeffe, Kahlo; and contemporary artists such as Rego, Hambling, Saville, and Claudette Johnson.

AGM 6pm followed by King and Collector: The Art of Henry Vlll at 6.30 pm

Henry Vlll was an enthusiastic patron of the arts whose palaces, tapestries and paintings enriched the Tudor court and began the Royal Collection.  The forces that influenced Henry’s life can be seen in the works he commissioned, by artists such as Pietro Torrigiano, Hans Holbein and Giralomo da Treviso.

Constable’s ‘Six Footers’ were derived from small pencil drawings and oil studies and, for each, Constable painted a full size oil sketch. In this lecture Constable’s dynamic late works and artistic temperament are brought to life in a new and exciting manner revealing a ‘Jackson Pollock’ of the 1830s.

This dynasty saw silk weaving and embroidery skills reach a pinnacle of artistic achievement. Symbolism defined the power, status, and opulence of the Court, images of Dragons and Phoenixes, emblems of the Emperor and Empress, being the most important iconography.

Gustav Klimt and his colleagues broke away from the imperially endorsed art institutions in Vienna in 1897 and founded the Secession. That year, Gustav Mahler arrived to take charge of the Opera House. We will compare and place in context these two talents, asking what fundamentally links and divides them.

Modern art is often considered difficult, but it is much less so when seen through the eyes of some of the greatest cartoonists of the last one hundred and fifty years, who provide a humorous and sceptical but instructive guide to modern art from Courbet to the Britart of the 1990s.

This presentation is a very personal account of how Caravaggio came into Keith Bonser’s life. This journey embraces the story of Caravaggio’s life and his paintings and epitomises the ability of art to inspire anyone

This talk is based on Clive’s continuing fascination with the dynamics of the art world. Why is a George III bureau worth so little? We shall see the main players as well as some of the great objects that have been sold and explain how some are now worth so much and others so little.

This is a colourful introduction to the secret world of our 2000-mile inland waterway network and looks at all aspects of their exceptional artistic, architectural and engineering vernacular. From sweeping aqueducts to tiny bollards; from colourful historic narrowboats to 'Roses and Castles' artwork; from grand World Heritage Sites to quirky listed buildings, the range is wide.

Leokadiya Kashperova was one of the most talented Russian pianists of her generation. She trained both as a musician and as a composer. For two decades she enjoyed a hugely successful career as a composer-pianist based in St Petersburg, touring Russia, and coming to London and Berlin to perform

Throughout his life David Hockney had always loved and depicted landscapes but it was especially after the year 2000 when he moved back to UK when landscape art became his main focus. His shadowless depictions of nature with bold colours and multiple perspectives in which everything is equally in focus, create an intense and exciting world.

This event will be in The Fitzwilliam Centre as all our lectures return to this venue.

Architect, letterer, and graphic artist, famed for his pictorial map posters for the London Underground and map panels for landmark buildings, MacDonald ‘Max’ Gill also designed arts and crafts cottages in Sussex and Dorset. This talk gives fascinating insights into the life and work of this remarkable but little-known artist.

The AGM is for members only and will be in The Fitzwilliam Centre

The Lecture will be in St Mary's Church immediately afterwards

Note thiis event is on a WEDNESDAY

Stubbs has sometimes been compared to Leonardo da Vinci because of the intense scientific method that lay behind the production of his world-famous Anatomy of the Horse published in 1766 – a work which revolutionised the understanding and depiction of equine subjects. This lecture looks at the life and work of this country’s greatest animal painter – it focusses on his depiction of horses but also considers the broader themes he addressed.

In the late 19th and for much of the 20th centuries, Polperro was considered one of Cornwall’s leading art centres, being “the haunt of half the artists of Britain” and the Cornish destination of choice for a wide range of significant foreign artists.  However, its development as an art centre has never previously been researched.  Leading Cornish art historian, David Tovey, who published a two volume history in 2021 and has curated the exhibition on the subject at Falmouth Art Gallery which runs from 2nd April to 18th June 2022, will present some of the highlights from this fascinating, untold story.

What goes on behind the scenes in the conservation, framing and scientific departments?

View the technical challenges and solutions devised by the Art Handling Team. Through scientific analysis discover extraordinary details and hidden secrets in works such as the Wilton Diptych, or by Bellini, Leonardo da Vinci and van Eyck

A delightfully entertaining look at the history of pleasure piers covering just over 200 years, from the first pier in the Regency period up to the present day. Just over 100 pleasure piers were built around our coastline, diverse in designs and some crowned with exotic palaces or pavilions. These elegant structures bear witness to the remarkable skills of the Victorian engineers and are an important part of our social history, the nation’s love of days out and summer holidays at seaside resorts. A celebration covering the heyday of piers, how generations have enjoyed the fresh air and sea views, been captivated by the amusements and entertained by a variety of artists. The incredible stories of our surviving piers, whether they are successful flourishing or sadly in trouble, their future and the ongoing struggle to keep them. 

French 17th century design owes much to one man; an ambitious visionary named Nicholas Fouquet who upstaged the young Louis XIV by employing the best creative talent of the day to commission a spectacular chateau for himself. The result was a radical new look for the century and it would be something he would live to regret.

The Bayeux Tapestry provides posterity with a startling testimonial of peoples’ lives in the late Viking Age. This lecture will present in detail the historical, cultural and artistic aspects of this unique masterpiece. The rumour that this embroidery will actually be shown in Britain in the near future has not yet been confirmed

The “poor little rich girl” who changed the face of 20th C
art, Peggy Guggenheim was not only ahead of her time
she discovered and nurtured a new generation of artists
producing a new kind of art. Through collecting not only
art but the artists themselves, her life was as radical as
her collection.

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Having never left the Russian nor Soviet empires in his lifetime, this Kiev-based artist can only have heard about the new tendencies in Western Art through magazines or publications. Nonetheless  Bogomazov managed to create masterpieces no less exceptional or ground-breaking than those of his European contemporaries.

A difficult, at times tragic life, shaped by a passionate love story on a background of major historical upheaval – Alexander Bogomazov is anartist of revolutionary ideas and unique style. James Butterwick examines the legacy of the genius who many consider the national artist of the Ukraine, and how his work is finally moving into the light.

During the sweltering summer of 1939, men and women from London’s national museums, galleries and archives forged ingenious plans to evacuate their collections to safety.  Dr Caroline Shenton reveals the story of how a dedicated team of unlikely heroes packed up our greatest treasures and in a race against time, dispatched them on a series of top-secret wartime adventures, including to Buckinghamshire.

Paris was the birthplace of modern painting. As the city changed, so did art. Edouard Manet emerged in the early 1860s as the leader of a new group of artists determined to paint Paris and its inhabitants in a resolutely modern style. Manet’s pictures, with their bold view of metropolitan life, shocked contemporary audiences and helped foster the idea of an artistic avant-garde. The Impressionists, who followed a little later, similarly turned to the railway stations, dance halls, cafes and bars of Paris for subject matter but presented the modern city in a softer, more sympathetic light. This lecture explores the links between Paris and the birth of modern painting in the work of Manet, Monet, Renoir, Morisot and Degas.     

Dreamtime, convicts and early settlers - artistic responses to life in the strange new continent. In the 19th C Australian Impressionism & the ‘Heidelberg School’ challenged the dominance of the ‘Victorian’ artistic style. Artists found their own language to depict landscape and culture Down Under and indigenous artists began to respond to contemporary life, retaining many of the traditions of their ancestors.

Members and guests will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the lecture available LIVE ONLY at  10.30 a.m.

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This lecture is about the post-war development of a
typical English town. What motivated the planners who
imposed the absurdities of Modern architecture on our
landscape? Hilariously told, it is a story that illustrates
the ugliest episode in England’s architectural history.

This lecture is available LIVE ONLY

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Sarah Cove has been instrumental in the attribution of three significant oils for BBC1’s Fake or Fortune ? series. This lecture gives a “behind the scenes” look at how decisions are made and will describe some extraordinary successes but also crushing disappointments.

Members and guests will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the lecture which will be LIVE ONLY at 10.30 a.m.

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This walk tells the incredible story of the recent transformation of the East End of London. Just a generation ago it was considered amongst the worst slums in Britain. Today, it is one of the most important areas in Europe for the dot-com industries. The tour starts with the mass Bengali immigration of the 1970’s covering some of the key moments in an extraordinary story. It will also introduce you to some well-known figures in the area’s transformation, including Banksy and Tracey Emin, before finishing in the heart of Britain’s Silicon Valley.

Members and guests will be sent a link on the day of the lecture which will be available live at 10.30 a.m and as a recording for the rest of the day

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Gainsborough transformed British art, taking both
portraiture and landscape painting to new heights. The
development of this very British genius will be explored
through his paintings and his own words and looks
forward to new developments at Gainsborough’s House
as it creates a national centre for the artist.

Members and guests will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the lecture which will be available live at  10.30 a.m and as a recording  until the end of the day.

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For many Kashmir is a beautiful valley in the Himalayas but for others a land of conflict.

It is less well known as an area of historic art of nearly 2000 years.

The lecture covers the diversity of crafts produced.

Buddhist sculptures  /Hindu temples / Islamic gardens / Paintings / Carpets / Calligraphy  and Shawls.

Members and guests will be sent a link on the day of the lecture which will be available live at 10.30 a.m and as a recording for the rest of the day

This lecture will look in depth at some of the most interesting
treasures discovered in the lands surrounding the
Mediterranean, including the Golden Death Mask of
Agamemnon, the Portland vase, the Standard of Ur and
Nebamun wall relief.

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the lecture which will be available live at  10.30 a.m and as a recording  until the end of the day.

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Pepe Martinez, a native East Ender, will relate how this vibrant area of London unfolded, over centuries, to reveal the dynamic, human history of many thousands of immigrant survivors. Their story is sometimes distressing but it is also a celebration – for, over time, they became established as able and creative contributors to their host nation. 

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the virtual walk which will be available live at  10.30 a.m and as a recording until the end of the day.

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The Glasgow Boys rebelled against views of heather covered highlands, favoured by the Academy in Edinburgh. Inspired by Lepage and Whistler and Japanese art they painted people going about everyday tasks. The excellent paintings ofthe Glasgow girls will also be viewed.
 

Members will be sent  an e-mail link on the day of the lecture available from 10.30 until the end of the day.

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The magnificent Ghent Altarpiece otherwise known as The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb is often considered the defining masterpiece of Northern Renaissance art. Van Eyck's largest ever painting, measuring nearly 5 metres across when opened, was ground-breaking in terms of technique displaying a vast array of brilliant colours with brushwork so detailed and precise that even the tiniest of details can be discerned, from fine blades of grass to delicate spiders' webs. Its extraordinary realism was matched by a revolutionary approach to iconography, depicting saints and biblical characters in a highly original manner that had never been seen before, indeed the meaning of the painting continues to incite debate amongst art historians even today. Despite its size, the altarpiece has become the subject of frequent art thefts and indeed is sometimes known as "the world's most stolen painting". Explore the fascinating and dramatic history of this beautiful work of art, due to be the focus of a major exhibition in Ghent in 2020 which has sadly had to be cancelled.  

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the lecture available live at 2.00 p.m and as a recording  until the end of the day.

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The lute holds a special place in the history of art: painters of the Italian Renaissance depicted golden-haired angels plucking its delicate strings, evoking celestial harmony; in the sixteenth century, during the rise of humanism, the lute became the accoutrement of educated courtiers, as depicted by the likes of Holbein and Titian; throughout the seventeenth century, the instrument continued to play a key role in emphasising the intimate, debauched and transient pleasures of interior scenes by Jan Steen and portraits by Frans Hals. This lecture looks at the lute, where it appears in paintings, and how it is used as a device to express various aspects of the human character throughout the ages. (Several pieces of live lute music will be performed as part of the lecture)

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the lecture available from 10.30 until the end of the day.

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In June 1520 Henry VIII and Francis 1 met in the Pale of Calais for 18 days of various entertainments staged to display the skill and splendour of each King and country.  The English logistics for this spectacular event are staggering, and the adornment of the Field, the temporary palace and everyone present is equally fascinating.  How was it all achieved? 

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the lecture which will only be available at 2.00.pm. on the day

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O'Keeffe brought a fresh approach to American Art from 1916. Whether floral, landscape or non-objective, her compositions shift between abstraction and realism and her dazzling rainbow palette juxtaposes clashing hues.

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the day of the lecture.

This lecture will only be available live at 10.30 a.m.

NO RECORDING WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR THIS LECTURE

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Ian who is both an Arts Society aacredited lecturer and London Blue Badge Guide will take us on a guided Tour of the City London entitled "From Bronzes to Banksy"

Members will be sent en e-mail link on the day of the lecture available from 12.30 until the end of the day.

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The 14th plague known as Black Death was a pivotal point in our history. We see individuals and communities seeking an explanation but, remarkably, carrying on with daily life. There was a distinct increase in interest in the macabre, but also in explorations of what would happen in the next life; some of it surprisingly optimistic and amusing.

Members will be sent en e-mail link on the day of the lecture available from 10.30 until the end of the day.

Guests are welcome please CONTACT US

JMW Turner, arguably the greatest practitioner on watercolour the world has ever seen, left frustratingly few written records of his processes and methods. Asked to give the key to being a successful artist he rather grumpily replied "The only secret I have is damned hard work.!" This lecture examines Turner's waterclour practice in detail, unlocking the mysteries behind his exceptional effects.

Members will be sent en e-mail link on the day of the lecture available from 10.30 until the end of the day.

Guests are welcome please CONTACT US

An additional exclusive on-line lecture for this season for us to enjoy in these unprecedented times.

The term trompe l’oeil was not used until the 19th century it can be traced all the way back to the Classical era. We trace the history of the technique and define it, looking at many extraordinary and entertaining examples from the masters of illusion in Flanders such as Memling and van Eyck, through Italian portraitists and Dutch still life specialists. We define and explore a number of specific techniques. 

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the morning of the lecture which will be available from 10.30 to the end of the day

Guests are welcome please CONTACT US

An additional exclusive on-line lecture for this season for us to enjoy in these unprecedented times.

In 17th century Holland history painting, portraiture, genre, landscape and still life painting all produced significant masterpieces. Dutch art historian Mariska Beekenkamp will introduce Dutch art and culture of the17th C, and analyse the cultural conditions (religious and economic) for the emergence of new forms and genres of art during the period

Mariska is an accredited lecturer on Dutch Baroque Art and works within the Dulwich Picture Gallery education programme.

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the morning of the lecture which will be available from 10.30 to the end of the day

Guests are welcome please CONTACT US

An additional exclusive on-line lecture for this season for us to enjoy in these unprecedented times.

Susan Owens, a former curator at the V & A will talk about Christina Rosetti- her own art works, illustrations to her writing and art inspired by her.

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the morning of the lecture which will be available from 10.30 to the end of the day

Guests are welcome CONTACT US

Paul Jagger is Court Assistant of the Worshipful Company of Information Technology and the author of a number of books. He will talk about some of the 40 liveries within the City of London.

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the morning of the lecture which will be available from 10.30 to the end of the day

Guests are welcome please CONTACT US.

An additional exclusive on-line lecture for this season for us to enjoy in these unprecedented times.

Maria Chester is a lecturer on Ancient Civilisations of the Americas.

Bonampak is a Mayan archaeologiclal site in Mexico which is famous for its murals

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the morning of the lecture which will be available from 10.30 to the end of the day

Guests are welcome pleae CONTACT US

Jacqueline specialises in European Art History and runs courses on art in Andalucia.

She will talk about Francisco Goya 1746-1828

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the morning of the lecture which will be available from 10.30 to the end of the day

The lecture on Piers has been postponed until another date

The first of our exclusive online lectures replaces

the lecture on the Bayeux Tapestry by Eveline Eaton which has  been postponed to a later date.

Members will be sent an e-mail link on the morning of the lecture which will be available from 10.30 to the end of the day

Why is a George III bureau worth so little? After 40 years in the
profession, all but 18 months of which as an auctioneer, this talk is
based on my continuing fascination with the dynamics of the art
world and explores these and many other themes.

ACTING ON GUIDANCE GIVEN WE HAVE HAD TO CANCEL THIS LECTURE WITH REGRET. 

From the 16th to the 19th centuries these three strands of cultural
borrowing gave rise to a new way of seeing and interpreting the world
around us. They brought about new designs in architecture, painting,
prints, textiles, furniture, interiors, glass, ceramics and jewellery.
We see their legacy today; can we trace their origins?

In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, Renaissance
metalworkers crafting armour for wealthy noblemen, created an
intensely personal art form, which embodied messages about
status, the social order and divine power.
Thursday 6th February Tobias

Over many centuries, the limited information in the Gospels has
been expanded into a rich blend of legend and fact. This lecture
will explain how the wise men became kings, how it was decided
that there were three of them, the symbolism associated with their
gifts, how animals turned up at the event and much more.

Caravaggio was the definitive bad boy of art history. In 1606, in a brawl, he ended up killing a certain Ranuccio Tomassoni with his sword. This lecture will explore in particular the remarkable stylistic transformations during Caravaggio’s last four years, a period of restlessness and yet extraordinary creative activity.

Archaeologist and broadcaster, Julian Richards, examines the
sophisticated architecture of Stonehenge and how perceptions of it
have changed over the centuries, through Blake, Turner, Moore,
Constable and J Deller - to modern adverts.

This lecture looks at the evolution of the coronation ceremony
from Saxon times, the stages of the coronation, the significance of
the Coronation Regalia, as well as the ill omens and memorable
mishaps which have occurred at coronations.

(After AGM)

Music lovers generally regard JS Bach as the greatest of early 18th century composers. In fact, he is so important in the history of music that we close down the Baroque period with his death in 1750. This lecture goes beneath the surface of Bach’s music to decode some of his musical symbolism, to reveal some of his working methods and to highlight some of his aesthetic goals.

On the basis of sensational new evidence from archaeological fieldwork, Neil will contrast the legend of Lawrence of Arabia with the true story of what happened in the famous desert war of 1916 to 1918. Is the legend a myth or reality? Was Lawrence, as some claim, a liar and a charlatan? Or was he, in fact, a brilliant military commander and a sincere advocate of the Arab national cause?

This lecture will explore the sacred architecture of Luang Prabang with its 35 Buddhist temples dating from the 16th century, superbly gilded and frescoed, with tiered roofs that sweep to the ground. Luang Prabang is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a status extending to the French colonial architecture of the town. It looks at the French legacy of elegant houses with Lao motifs, a unique fusion of East and West.
 

Giotto is regarded as one of the founders of modern art because he was responsible for changing the style from the flat look, with idealised figures, to a much more realistic depiction of rounded, weighty figures. This was 120 years before the Renaissance artists began working out an organised perspective system, and studying the anatomy of the figure based on mathematics. Most of them looked back to Giotto for their inspiration.

In this lecture, Louise looks at how the Queen of Sheba has captured the imagination of great artists, inspired epic films and has led archaeologists to go in search of her land—a search that has led to the discoveries of great temples, tombs and treasures in both the Yemen and Ethiopia.

Ted' Seago's refined landscapes personified a respect for the traditions of British landscape painting as well as impressionism. In Britain, he was part of a remarkable post-impressionist flowering that included the likes of Sickert, Munnings and Augustus John. What made Seago quintessentially English was the great subtlety of his colour control and peaceful landscape compositions.

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 at Covent Garden during its first 200 years.

Sarah traces the history of one of the world's most ancient and beloved musical instruments from thousands of years BC through to the developments during the Rennaisance and 19th centuries that created the beautiful instrument we see and hear played today. Performing on her own reproduction and antique instruments, Sarah will demonstrate the development and evolving sound and repertoire of the harp throughout its history.

We will flow with the current of the river from its beginnings as a muddy puddle to its magnificent merging with the sea. Paintings by artists past and present will open our eyes to the beauty of the river. What is it that makes us go down to the river? It is our need to reflect on how we feel about our lives. As the river snakes its way towards the sea, the movement of the water and the shape of the landscape change. Individual artists are attracted to particular parts of the river because that place reflects a fundamental dream that they have about life. Constable is an obvious example of this but so are Stanley Spencer, Whistler and Michael Andrews. Some artists paint imaginary rivers inspired by English literature such as Millais and Waterhouse. Others are inspired by Greek myths in which Gods chase after river nymphs. Cecil Collins and Peter Doig are modern artists who imbue the river with a deep spirituality. Where the river meets the sea our destiny is fulfilled. We pass from life to death and our personal dreams become universal ones. Flow with the current of the river from its source to the sea. “

Throughout art, men have often been shown to be behaving badly, frequently at the expense of women. From Hogarth’s Rake’s Progress through to other rakes portrayed by Reynolds or featured in Pre-Raphaelite and Victorian narrative paintings, the theme has been explored. The talk brings the number of ‘rakes’ in art, both on and off the canvas, up-to-date and into our times, with Picasso, Gauguin, Augustus John, Jacob Epstein, Lucian Freud and others.

This lecture will follow the AGM which starts at 6.00pm.

The talk is based on the Islamic manuscript, the Padshahnama (chronicle of the King of the World) which is the unique official history of the Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan, who ruled India from 1628 to 1658. He is best remembered for the building of the Taj Mahal as a tomb for his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal.

This lecture explores the history, art and culture of this extraordinary country, which for centuries has preserved its traditional Buddhist values. Over the last few decades there have been many changes; such as the introduction of roads, television and tourism. Will Bhutan be able to maintain the fine balance between tradition and modernity without diminishing its very unique culture.

During this lecture, we will look at the early history of glassmaking in Venice, the material itself and the techniques involved in forming and decorating the pieces. We will discuss the early fashion for richly coloured and enameled glass, the sources of inspiration behind the forms and the decoration, who would have owned the pieces and how they would have been used or displayed.

The lecture illustrates the woven art of the nomads as they moved over the lands they have travelled for generations. The audience will have the opportunity of seeing their way of life and looking at the 19th century rugs and utilitarian weavings, similar to those which I discovered during my forays into the different tribal territories. The lecture also brings to life some of the unforgettable stories and adventures I experienced whilst looking for them.

Evening lecture being run by The Arts Society Chiltern Hills Area - Bring a Friend for £5

£5 FOR A DOUBLE TICKET (MEMBER OF THE ARTS SOCIETY PLUS NON MEMBER FRIEND)

At The Hub, Easton Street, High Wycombe HP11 1NJ 7.00 for 7.30 p.m.  Application form can be downloaded here.

Michelangelo was grumpy, dirty, ugly and tight-fisted, but produced sculpture, painting and architecture of such startling beauty and originality that two biographies were written in his lifetime, we know exactly what he looked like in life and at his death, and today we have over 1400 surviving letters in his own hand.

Over 450 years have passed since the death of this talented yet tempestuous superstar. This lecture sets out to examine several of his drawings, a little of his poetry and a number of his finished and unfinished works with the aim of all but summoning the great man to the room.  Our lecturer: Dan is an educationalist with a passion for all things Italian. Formerly Head of History of Art at Wycombe Abbey School, Dan is now Deputy Head of Sixth Form at Cheltenham College.  He has been lecturing since 2001, and spent 9 years working as a senior lecturer, tutor and tour guide  for Art History Abroad. He was voted the British winner of the World Guide of the Year Awards in 2008 and, alongside his lectures and special interest days, he also organises educational study trips  for members of The Arts Society to a range of destinations in Italy.

This lecture will not only look at the early years of the two great master, their training and the masters that taught them, but will also provide an insight into the lives of Leonardo and Michelangelo while looking at some of their major works, and will ultimately provide an understanding of their works through the historical and social context within which these artists worked.

A man of conscience and self-questioning, art provided the outlet through which Van Gogh was able to communicate his feelings and troubled life. In this lecture, a selection of his paintings will help us to understand the inner workings of the man behind all those self portraits.

The term 'Magi' refers to the Zoroastrian priest-sages, anonymous wise men who were specialists in medicine, religion and astronomy, who travelled from 'The East' - variously identified as any country from Arabia to Persia. We investigate the sources for the stories of their journey and the symbolism of their gifts. We look at ne of the most popular religious subjects for artists, the Adoration of the Magi

In this lively presentation John shares his knowledge and enthusiasm for wine and the contribution that ‘wine art’ makes to our colourful world Wine can be a civilising influence upon us and it is made to be shared and enjoyed. As a consequence there are numerous wonderful paintings of wine being made and wine being drunk in celebration but it also lends itself to wicked cartoons and striking posters .

Dickens brought into the world a staggering array of wonderful characters with orphans, starving children, misers, murderers and abusive school teachers among them. People such as Mr Micawber, Fagin and Abel Magwitch remain in one’s literary psyche long after the books are put down. The lecturer looks at the life and places of Dickens while interspersing the events with readings of his works .

This lecture will follow the AGM which starts at 6.00pm.

Before the 1917 Revolution, Russian artists of the calibre of Kandinsky, Malevich and Stravinsky emerged for the first time as leaders of the European avant-garde. They were not only consummate professionals and peerless artists in their own right, they were revolutionaries, committed to forging a new artistic language. This lecture explores the changes which took place across the arts in Russia on the eve of the Bolshevik Revolution.

James Cook is widely renowned as an explorer, pioneering navigator and preventer of scurvy and his voyages provided unprecedented information about the Pacific Ocean, and about those who lived on its islands and shores. This was to have a profound influence on The Enlightenment.

The complex relationship between artist and muse and the inspiration for some of the most significant works of art of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The ‘stunners’ of the Pre Raphaelites; Picasso’s various wives and companions; the Dali’s muses as different as the artists themselves.

Krakow was the ancient capital of Poland up until the 17th century. Its great market square, the spider’s web of medieval streets, the curiously irregular towers of St Mary’s with its magnificent carved altarpiece, the university where Copernicus first studied the stars, and, above all the majestic cathedral over-looking the Vistula river, where the king’s of Poland are buried, tell the story of this turbulent country.

Auguste Rodin (1840-1917) represents the end of a sculptural tra-dition that goes back to Michelangelo, and ultimately to the an-cient Greeks. Primarily a modeller, he completely revivified the heroic figural tradition, and brought a new and often erotic sensibility to bear on it.

Rodin sought to express in an age not so dissimilar to our own, the anguish and ecstasy of the human soul as expressed through the movements of the human body - an ambition worthy of Michelangelo. In doing so he created an art that addresses itself directly to our own bodies and imaginations and created a challenge that was answered by many of the greatest painters and sculptors of modern times.

Please note that this is a change to the published program as sadly Eric Shanes, the original lecturer, died recently.

Between 1885 and 1916, Carl Fabergé made fifty jewelled eggs – Easter presents from Russia’s last two emperors to their wives. Since the brutal murder of the last tsar and his family in a Siberian basement, these eggs have become the most famous surviving symbols of the Romanov Empire: both supreme examples of the jeweller’s art and the vulgar playthings of a decadent court.

Hans Holbein was the first great mainland painter to spend much time in England and he brought with him a sophistication and skill, with far reaching consequences for this island's artistic development. His Ambassadors is recognised by the National Gallery of London as one of its greatest treasures.

Unfortunately there has been a change to the advertised program as Val Woodgate is unwell.  Her husband, Frank Woodgate is kindly stepping in and going to tell us about 'The Landscapes of Paul Nash'.  Here is a description of the lecture.

"One of the great British Landscape painters of the twentieth century, Paul Nash’s visionary response to the fertility of nature and the changing seasons is mysterious and unforgettable.  In the thirties, he became one of the most prominent British Surrealists, and helped to organise the International Surrealism Exhibition in London in 1936.

Nash was an Official War Artist in both World Wars.  In each case his appointment was greeted with a certain scepticism;  in each case he became the greatest painter of the war."

From the Edwardian era to the outbreak of World War II millions of artist drawn humorous postcards were produced not just for entertainment but to bolster morale, to inspire, instruct, motivate and persuade. Discover the popular themes and styles of the period by the masters of the medium and the reasons why their popularity waned with the British public.

Through 18th century prints, oils, photography, modern silkscreens, lithographs and mixed media works, the image and history of this Grade II building comes to life. Located in Mayfair, central London, the internal fabric of this important building beautifully fuses 18th century neo-classical architecture with the highly fashionable Art Deco style and serves as an eye-catching home for the current modern British art collection.

A culinary journey from the late Tudor period to the mid 20th century, considering both how food presentation was influenced by the wider trends of each era, and how that presentation reflects notions of edibility through time. From delicate, moulded pies, to flamboyant stuffed turkeys with lobster tail wings, we will explore the idea of food as the ultimate in ephemeral art.  

This lecture will follow the AGM.

The lecture traces the majestic themes of Architecture through 1000 years of History. Our 10 great buildings begin in 1076 with the Tower of London’s White Tower and end with Norman Foster’s Great Court at the British Museum which opened in 2000.

This lecture will follow the AGM.

Taking you through three centuries of passport design, this lecture explains the overt and uncovers the covert to illustrate the defences built in to the passport and the tricks the forger uses to defeat them. You will never see your passport in the same light again!

With an MA from Trinity College, Dublin and a qualified librarian, Chloë Cockerill has been Regional Development Manager for the Churches Conservation Trust since 2001.

Marking the bicentenary of the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, this lecture compliments a major exhibition to be held at the Royal Academy in Autumn 2015. It will explore the contrasting views presented by British and French artists, including such masters as Turner and David. Also considered will be some less elevated art forms ranging from ladies’ fans to full enactments played out on real water at Sadler’s Wells Theatre.

Related Exhibitions and Events:

• Waterloo at Windsor (Windsor Castle, 31 Jan 2015-13 Jan 2016);
• Wellington: Triumphs, Politics and Passions (National Portrait Gallery, 12 Mar-7 Jun 2015)
• Bonaparte and the British (British Museum, 5 Feb-16 Aug 2015)
• Fighting History (Tate Britain, 9 Jun-13 Sep 2015)
  

Dr Lois Oliver studied English Literature at Cambridge University, and History of Art at the Courtauld Institute, completing an MA in Venetian Renaissance Art and writing her doctoral thesis on The Image of the Artist, Paris 1815-1855.

She worked at the Harvard University Art Museums before joining the curatorial team at the V&A and then the National Gallery, where she curated the major exhibition ‘Rebels and Martyrs’ (2006) and a series of three touring exhibitions.

Currently Assistant Professor in History of Art at the University of Notre Dame in London, and a Visiting Lecturer at the Courtauld Institute, she lectures for arts organisations throughout the UK, writes audio and multimedia tours for clients including Tate, the National Gallery and the Royal Academy, and has appeared on TV programmes for the BBC and Channel 5.

Dr. Twigs Way is a garden historian, author, researcher and lecturer. Her interest in garden history grew out of her original career in landscape archaeology and landscape history, and blossomed during a period of lecturing for the University of Cambridge. She now carries out freelance research in the history of specific gardens and parks for bodies such as English Heritage, the National Trust and various private clients. She is especially interested in social and political aspects of the garden, as well as the portrayal of parks and gardens in art and literature. In addition to this very serious side of her work she likes to explore the quirkier and less trammelled aspects of gardens in the past and her publications include Allotments, History of Garden Gnomes, History of Women in the Garden, and the illustrated A Nation of Gardeners.

Matthew Williams lectures widely on the subject of design, and is especially interested in that of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. A recognised expert in the work of the designer William Burges, he has been the Curator of Cardiff Castle in South Wales for over twenty years and has published widely in art and architectural journals. His new book, the result of many years research, is a history of Cardiff Castle. A long standing member of NADFAS, Matthew has been a Volunteers Representative, a Programme Secretary and a Chairman. He has been a NADFAS lecturer for more than ten years.

Leslie Primo holds a BA in Art History and an MA in Renaissance Studies from Birkbeck College, University of London. He was Visiting Lecturer in Art History at the University of Reading in 2005 and 2007; and now gives lectures, guided tours and special talks at both the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery in London.

Catherine Oakes runs the History of Art programme for OUDCE which enrols nearly a thousand students every year through its provision of weekly classes, day and weekend schools, summer schools, on-line courses and certificates and diplomas. She directs the Master of Studies programme in Literature and Arts, co-directs the Postgraduate Certificate in Historical Studies, and co-directs the D Phil programme in architectural history. She is a medievalist specialising in Romanesque art and architecture, and the interrelation of word and image in western medieval culture.

David Phillips was a curator of art in Nottingham Castle Museum from 1968 to 1982. He then became a lecturer in museum studies at Manchester University from 1982 to 1998 since when he has been a freelance lecturer following up his interests in art, its forgery and psychology. He has worked on many exhibitions, one selected for the Arts Council in 1986 was entitled: "Don't trust the label: an exhibition of fakes, imitations and the real thing."

Dominic is a bookbinder, teacher and filmmaker. He first learned bookbinding at age 16 from Benedictine Monks and later at the London College of Printing. He has worked at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and for various binderies in London, New York and San Francisco, and spends part of the year teaching across the USA. He has his bindery in the Lake District, from where he travels across the UK teaching master classes and lecturing. He is Vice President of the Society of Bookbinders and was elected a Fellow of Designer Bookbinders in 2008. His binding work is mostly the restoration of antiquarian books and Design Bindings. He has won many prizes in the Designer Bookbinders competition, including both first prizes and the Mansfield Silver Medal in 2007. His bindings are in collections worldwide, including the British Library and the John Rylands Library in Manchester. In 2010 he bound a special copy of the winner of the Booker Prize which was presented to the author. In June 2013 he won first prize in the prestigious Sir Paul Getty International Bookbinding Competition. His winning binding was acquired by the Bodleian Library in Oxford.

The lecture, enhanced by music, is given by Jeremy Barlow who studied music at Cambridge and the RCM. He still performs and has written books about music.

The speaker studied at Cambridge, and as a practising artist was elected to the RBA in 1994 and was appointed Keeper in 2012.

Anthea Streeter studied Fine and Decorative Arts in London and Harvard and lectured at Oxford and London.

Fenella Billington is a Liveryman of the Skinners’ Company whose history, art and treasurers were the subject for her Master’s thesis. She is a freelance speaker for the Art Fund and National Trust.

Dr White formerly worked for the National Trust at Hardwick Hall. She is now a very successful freelance lecturer especially involved in continuing education courses at Oxford, Bristol and Warwick Universities.

Timothy is a member of the great banking family who were also great collectors of silver. He was curator of the Gilbert Collection at Somerset House and consultant curator at the V&A Museum.

Ann Clements has a wide experience lecturing at home and abroad. Earlier works includes cataloguing English watercolours for the Whitworth Art Gallery and research for the Paul Mellon Foundation.