Caravaggio is one of the best known names today. A man of proverbial rebelliousness, painting in a style which he knew would drop a bomb on the art world he grew up in. Painting with startling immediacy, he rejected his peers’ stale and artificial style. He was fortunate to be painting at a time when the Church wanted to harness the power of his art to enforce its message.

The international art market is today dominated by four British auction houses, all founded in the 18th century, their record prices sensationally reported by the world's media. But what is it like behind the canvas? How do auction houses function? What goes on behind the scenes and what is required for a successful sale to take place?

Bustling, noisy, vibrant, New York epitomises the modern city at its best (and occasional worst). Sailing past the Statue of Liberty, we are processed on Ellis Island before marvelling at this sky-scrapered leviathan of a metropolis. Marvel at the Empire State building, the Chrysler, the Flat Iron and the Rockefeller Centre. Wonder at the splendours of the Brooklyn Bridge, the massive Metropolitan Museum of Art, the delicious Frick Collection, Central Park and Frank Lloyd Wright's Guggenheim. And as for the lavishly refurbished Grand Central....wow!

The work of S.J.Peploe and J.D Fregusson was seen in Edinburgh and London in the decade leading up to World War1, but Hunter and Cadell were less well known. All were bold pioneers in the field of rich colour and exhuberant brushwork. The strong light and bright colour they discovered in France was easily harnessed to their favourite places in Scotland. People,places,interiors and still life were among their favorite subjects.

Having never left the Russian or Soviet empires,this Kyiv- based artist created masterpieces no less exceptional or ground-breaking than those of his European contemporaries, probably learning about Western Art through magasines or publications. Despite a difficult, at times tragic life, shaped by a passionate love story in a time of major historical upheaval, Oleksandr Bogomazov was an artist of revolutionary ideas and unique style. James Butterwick examines the legacy of the genius.

A successful Viennese painterof architectural decorations in a conventional manner.Klint's later more personal style was criticised as pornographic. He subsequently accepted no more commisions but achieved a new success with paintings of his 'golden phase',The Kiss being perhaps his most famous. His work encapsulates turn of the century Vienna at its distinctive artistic peak

Tony Rawlins will play and sing excerpts from some of our favourite carols, including "Baroque on a Roll" and "The Three Kings", and try to answer important questions, such as who wrote them—and when? What has an assassinated Prince of Bohemia got to do with Christmas? Why should the Merry Gentlemen rest and not be dismayed?   There will be plenty of opportunity for audience participation if you wish to sing along.

Although glass has been made for centuries, the 1960s saw a revolution in the way it was made, opening it up to artists across the world and allowing glass to be used as a medium for art. After looking at the historical context and the genesis of the movement, I examine the work of six key glass artists from the US and the UK, including Dale Chihuly, Sam Herman, and Peter Layton. Containing previously unseen photographs taken at the time, this talk also includes my top tips and an overview of the market today and the creative journey made by studio glassmakers so far.

Dalí … “the difference between a madman and me is that I am not mad.” At one time the most well-known and popular artist of the twentieth century, Dalí was a self-publicist who filled gossip columns with accounts of his eccentricities for over 60 years. His paintings of the invisible world of the unconscious mind were considered shocking and he quickly became the most exotic and well-known member of the extreme group of Surrealists. His soft watches and huge animals with stick-insect legs are among the most memorable invented images of our time.

Dumfries House in Ayrshire, once the home of the Marquesses of Bute, was acquired for the nation following a lastminute rescue in 2007, largely through the involvement of HRH the Prince of Wales. Never before opened to the public, Dumfries House is a forgotten Georgian gem, designed by Adam and furnished by Chippendale and others.. The story of its controversial rescue is both fascinating and entertaining.

The Romans have left us with a remarkable artistic record of their lifestyle, beliefs, achievements and entertainment in the form of beautiful mosaics. From the best sites and museums in the world we see how they built on earlier Greek traditions; the cities in which they lived; the Gods and myths in which they believed; and the exotic lives of the Romans themselves - from Britain to Sicily, from Morocco to Syria. This lavishly illustrated lecture uses only mosaics from start to finish, bringing the distant world of the Romans gloriously back to life with vibrant images full of action.

In May 1746 the great Venetian artist Canaletto moved to England.  European war had prevented Englishmen from embarking on their Grand Tour so Canaletto reasoned that if they would not come to him, he had better go to them. For the next 9 years he created nearly 150 works of art showing us Georgian England, from the Lord Mayor's show and the construction of Westminster Bridge to the Vauxhall pleasure gardens, Eton College and Warwick Castle. We will revel in the delights of Canaletto's stay until in 1755, he returned home to Venice for good.

The history of art is peppered with first rate bust ups between the great early Renaissance artists, Brunelleschi and Ghiberti, between Constable and Turner in the early 1830s, between Salvador Dali and the Surrealist leader, Andre Breton, in the 1930s and, most recently, between the graffiti artists Banksy and ‘King’ Robbo, who painted out and amended each other’s works.

In 1925, 16 million visitors witnessed PARIS’S EXPO - The International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts. What would we have seen in this landmark exhibition, if we had been one of those visitors? What drew the Crowds? And how did this seminal exhibition play a fundamental role in giving rise to a new international and truly GLOBAL style that we have come to know as ART DECO? 

We shall discover how magicians have appeared in art throughout the centuries, whether in paintings, satirical prints or cartoons. Early artists used the magician to symbolise the mysterious and the unknown, associating them with astrology. In the 16th century, Pieter Bruegel and Hieronymus Bosch produced two of the most famous and striking pictures of the conjurer performing the Cups and Balls trick. The 18th and 19th century saw a proliferation in engravings and lithographs showing the magician both indoors and on the streets.

The great composer Franz Schubert (1797-1828) surrounded himself with talented friends, whose affection stimulated his romantic creativity and he kept himself ever amused. We will see how Schubert rewarded his companions with gifts of his “divine music”, some of which Dr Griffiths will illustrate at the piano.

A writer keen sailor, drug addict, original “angry young man”, designer and polemicist, Pugin also had 3 wives, several girlfriends, and at least 8 children – and died insane at just 40. We discuss how this volcanic personality pioneered the Gothic Revival, which swept through Victorian Britain and much of the world.

We will trace Banksy's humble beginnings as a tagger on the streets of Bristol to one of the most recognisable names in the art world. We will examine the reasons behind his incredible rise, look at some of his famous stunts and discuss his influence on the art market and his legacy.

While they were two of the most familiar figures in Italian Renaissance art, their rivalry and antipathy are largely undocumented. We throw a light on the motivations for their animosity by looking in particular at their commission for the great council chamber in Florence.

Henry V111 can be considered the founder of the Royal Collection. He used the splendour of the arts to enhance his own image. We will learn why and when certain artworks were produced and how the king was viewed in his own time.

John Margesson Esq. (1794-1866) was a Regency man of means. His recently discovered diary gives an intensely personal glimpse into his life and wanderings from France to Sussex to London and back to France before ending in Rome.

We will examine the way Picasso's emotional love life influenced what he painted and how he painted it. The lecture concentrates on the seven most important women in his life, two of whom he married.

Patience, arguably their most successful opera, was inspired the eccentricities and affectations of the Aesthetic Movement. Well known figures had their work mercilessly sent up. Oscar Wilde and James Whisler inspired the make-up and costumes of the principal characters.

We will discover remarkable Victorian and Edwardian artworks in the Bournemouth home of Sir Merton and Lady Annie Russel-Cotes. Additions since their deaths in the 1920's include Dante Gabriel Rossetti's Venus. turner of hearts.

Join Margaret for a seasonal hour of Christmas bygones and entertainment as she brings to life the joy
of music through the ages at this time of year.
Keeping to a brief history of the harp, she concentrates more on the incredible pedal mechanism
invented for the harp and demonstrates on her own instrument through a variety of music exploring
some of the old Christmas Carols and their origins. Margaret will play a selection of festive favourites
to get you in the mood for Christmas.

E H Shepard was a great royalist – his earliest drawings are of Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee in 1887
(when he was only seven years old) and amongst his last of Her Majesty The Queen. Shepard lived
through six reigns, drew all six monarchs, and met three personally. This lecture demonstrates how
Shepard represented the majesty of monarchy, both formally and informally, and reflected the changing
image of royalty in Britain through the 20th century. There are poignant illustrations, such as that of King
Edward VIII turning away from the Coronation Throne in Westminster Abbey at the time of the Abdication
in 1936, and some inspiring images, such as the pageant for the Coronation of Their Majesties King
George VI and Queen Elizabeth.

Exuberant, topical, lively - and just a little rude - English caricature has always depicted human beings
as they were rather than as they would like to be.
From William Hogarth to David Low via Rowlandson and Gillray, we will explore this fascinating and
revealing world.
 

During this lecture we will look at the work of André le Nôtre, royal gardener to Louis XIV and the
magnificent gardens he created for the ‘Sun King ’ at Versailles. We will examine the laying out of the
formal terraces, the great tree-lined walks and the vast expanses of water. We will discuss the glorification
of the King through the iconography of the statues and great fountain groups; and the importance of
playing water to make the gardens come alive.
We will also look at the extravagant entertainments that took place within the grounds; and the summer
houses and pleasure pavilions where the King was able to escape from the thronging crowds.
 

From the late 1850s to the mid-1870s a new craze gripped the world. Photography had just begun to be
popularised and suddenly nearly everyone could afford a portrait of themselves to share with others.
These small photographic portraits mounted on card were shot professionally in studios and handed out
like business or greetings cards - just like we share ‘selfies’ on today’s social media. Across nearly two
decades over 400 million cards were estimated to have been printed and shared with friends, family and
fans. We think we invented the ‘selfie’, but we didn’t - welcome to the Victorian carte de visite.
In this highly visual and relevant lecture, we’ll look at the rise and fall of the fashion, learn how these
cards were used and find ways of dating cards from clothing and hairstyles. We’ll examine in detail the
hidden meanings behind the poses, facial expressions, backgrounds, and choice of clothes to reveal the
fascinating histories behind these cards that were used by everyone from royalty to the man in the street.

Sophie explores the links between the visual and the aural in this presentation. Drawing on the works of
great painters including Brueghel, Hogarth and Rigaud, Sophie presents a variety of images of historical
woodwind instruments in their original social context.
The symbolism of music in mediaeval and Renaissance arts is also explored along with live performances
of historical music upon authentic instruments.

Susan will provide an intimate look at the fashions of the 1920s at Barkers Department store, Kensington,
London. Drawing on an historic album of photographs and promotional material, Susan will paint a picture
of the spectacular fashion shows held at the store. Chairman, Sir Sydney Skinner, was ground breaking
in building a Fashion Display Hall with a catwalk, unique in its day, to entice customers to view the latest
season’s fashions. Celebrity supermodels of the period are pictured in theatrical fashions, which were
then promoted in the daily press. At a time when the economy was struggling from the Great Depression,
Barkers invested in fashion marketing, positioning itself as a luxury department store.

Towards the end of her life May Morris (1862-1938) - designer, craftsperson, and younger daughter of
William Morris – wrote, ‘I’m a remarkable woman, always was, though none of you seem to think so’.
Overshadowed in her lifetime by the achievements of her illustrious father, thankfully today May Morris
is recognised as a leading figure in the Arts & Crafts Movement.
Excelling in the field of embroidery, she was Head of Embroidery at Morris & Co. by the time she was
twenty-three. May also designed wallpapers, made jewellery and was a talented amateur watercolour
artist. She was instrumental in founding the Women’s Guild of Arts formed to support women working in
the arts and crafts field at a time when they were excluded from similar organisations. A skilled editor,
May spent her later years editing the 24 volumes of her father's collected works.
 

From an Indian river bed thousands of years ago to the Tower of London - the fascinating story of the ‘Mountain of Light’. The story of this celebrated diamond is not only intriguing but also full of surprises; it has been the subject of desire, jealousy, intrigue, passion and political chicanery. This lecture follows the journey of this fabulous diamond from the depths of early Indian history through the bloody history of the Mughals to the power and politics of the British Empire, illustrated by extraordinary artists who were committed to describing the events and emotions of their time.

Find out, in this very light-hearted lecture, about the various ceremonial events that take place around Christmas time. Carol services, concerts and even Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace and Windsor all play their part. How do the Chelsea Pensioners prepare and celebrate the festive season? All will be revealed so, come along and feel wrapped in a blanket of Christmas loveliness.

The Impressionists were an innovative and radical group of artists who took Paris by storm in the 1870s. Using new colours and techniques, they created paintings of modern life which shocked and horrified the art establishment. From the start the group included women artists but their contribution to Impressionism has often been overshadowed by their male contemporaries. Marie Bracquemond, Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt all exhibited regularly at the Impressionist exhibitions alongside artists such as Monet, Renoir and Degas. In 1894 they were given the title “Les Trois Grandes Dames d’Impressionisme” by the art critic Gustave Geffroy.

This lecture will discuss the lives of each of these artists and their work, revealing their skill and originality as well as their willingness to take risks, despite the additional obstacles they faced as women. Graham Jones : A very Ceremonial Christmas Find out, in this very light-hearted lecture, about the various ceremonial events that take place around Christmas time. Carol services, concerts and even Changing the Guard 

From Bartholomew Fair to Marks and Spencer via Petticoat Lane and market crosses, we will explore the lively 1.000-year history of 'shop till you drop'. John Sainsbury, Messrs Harrod and Whiteley, WHSmith - all the big names are here. Fully illustrated with a profusion of vintage posters, packaging and old shop fronts.

This lecture provides an intimate look at the fashions of the 1920s at Barkers Department store, Kensington, London. Drawing on an historic album of photographs and promotional material, Susan will paint a picture of the spectacular fashion shows held at the store. Chairman, Sir Sydney Skinner, was ground breaking in building a Fashion Display Hall with a catwalk, unique in its day, to entice customers to view the latest season’s fashions. Celebrity supermodels of the period are pictured in theatrical fashions, which were then promoted in the daily press. At a time when the economy was struggling from the Great Depression, Barkers invested in fashion marketing, positioning itself as a luxury department store.

Mrs Sarah Wells – mother to author H.G. Wells – kept a revelatory diary for the 14 years she toiled below stairs at Uppark. She was an elderly, anxious woman working in a notoriously old-fashioned household. But what grated most was that her mistress was born a mere dairy farmer’s daughter…

As mistress of the King, Madame de Pompadour used her power, wealth and influence to promote the arts at the court of Louis XV. She sat for portraits by the leading painters of the day, Francois Boucher, Maurice Quentin de La Tour and Francois-Hubert Drouais. This lecture explores the way Pompadour used these commissions to craft her image and ensure her survival in the precarious world of 18th century court politics. These portraits chart the changing public face of this remarkable woman, from the sensuous temptress of her early years, through enlightenment intellectual in mid-career, to her final phase as faithful counsellor and companion.

“Antiques, I don’t understand them and they’re beyond my budget. They’re not for me”. A persuasive introduction to buying antiques and integrating and using them in today’s homes. The state of the antiques market and the different meanings of the word value are considered, and we take a look at what current and future generations of collectors are buying, why they are buying it and how they are displaying it.

George Gershwin was born on September 26, 1898, in Brooklyn, New York the second child of Russian/Jewish immigrants and is universally acknowledged as one of the most significant composers of the 20th century, both for his work for stage and screen, often with lyrics by his brother Ira, but also for his masterful classical compositions, including the opera Porgy and Bess. He died tragically at the age of 38. Songs featured include: Rhapsody in Blue, Summertime, A Foggy Day in London Town, I Got Rhythm, The Man I Love, Embraceable You, Bess You is My Woman Now, They Can’t Take That Away from Me, Someone to Watch Over Me.

Walter Sickert was the most charismatic British artist of the early Twentieth Century. Ever conscious of his public image, he cultivated a variety of personae: aesthete; provocateur; sage, painter of modern life. He was drawn to shocking or notorious subjects (those more likely to garner attention), especially the sensational ‘Camden Town Murder’ of 1907. This lecture examines the series of paintings and prints Sickert produced in response to the crime and its aftermath. These are compelling images, among the most original by any British artist of the period. How was Sickert able to create great art out of murder? Why was he, and much of the British public, so fascinated by the case? What did the Camden Town Murder series do for Sickert’s reputation and car

Note:  November is a live Lecture to be held at Colston Hall commencing at 11.00am and followed by wine and mince pies (there is no afternoon lecture). It is a Members only event - no guests please as hall numbers are limited.

Zoom Lecture commencing 11 am

Zoom Lecture commencing 11 am

Zoom Lecture commencing at 11 am

Zoom Lecture commencing at 11 am

Zoom Lecture commencing at 11 am

Having trained as a librarian, I worked as an information professional in the financial services industry for over 25 years, most latterly as the Manager, Information Resources at a global insurance company.

In 2004 I  gained the Blue Badge for London, winning the prize for Best Written Paper. 

Had  "Jewish London"  my first book pubished with co author Roslyn Rawson  March 2012

The tours and talks (Virtual Tours) cover a range of topics but often focus on the 'human stories behind the buildings'. That is where my passion for London stems from.

This really is a fascinating insight into the history of one of our greatest ever institutions - our great British public park. We have all enjoyed them at some time in our lives but what do we really know about them? their origins? did they really start in the Victorian period or do they go even further back? This talk illustrates their origins, talks about the need for parks, the Victorian heyday, what makes a great park, with examples of lodges, lakes, bandstands, fountains and floral displays, to their great decline in the sixties and seventies. However, the subsequent revival has led to a major shift in interest in our parks and once again we are much in love with them. This is also a highly illustrative talk accompanied by slides with examples of parks from across the UK and their designs and architecture. This is a particularly popular talk and always goes down well as we can nearly always recount our own experiences with our own local park.

Paul Rabbitts -BA (Hons), MLA, FRSA, FLI

Author, Parks Historian & Speaker

With the obsessions have come a number of opportunities to speak to a wide range of community groups and organisations over the years. This has ranged from Local Arts Societies, Regional Gardens Trusts, Women's Institutes to Church Groups, Rotary Clubs, Townswomen's Guilds, Sports Clubs, U3A, Museums, History Societies, Academic Institutions and lobbyist organisations.

I was on the approved list of speakers for the County Durham Federation of Women's Institutes and am currently on the Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire Federation's approved list of speakers, as well as a regular with local U3A's and am now an accredited lecturer for the Arts Society

 I offer a light hearted but entertaining talk which groups find interesting, informative and enjoy.

This is the gripping and sometimes hilarious story of how a band of heroic curators and eccentric custodians saved Britain’s national heritage during our Darkest Hour. As Hitler’s forces gathered on the other side of the Channel to threaten these islands, men and women from London’s national museums, galleries and archives forged extraordinary plans to evacuate their collections to safety. Utilising country houses from Buckinghamshire to Cumbria, tube tunnels, Welsh mines and Wiltshire quarries, a dedicated team of unlikely heroes packed up their greatest treasures in a race against time during the sweltering summer of 1939, dispatching them throughout the country on a series of secret wartime adventures, retold in this talk.

Dr Caroline Shenton

Caroline Shenton is the former Director of the Parliamentary Archives at Westminster, an archivist, historian and writer. She was previously a senior archivist at the National Archives and is a Fellow of both the Society of Antiquaries and the Royal Historical Society. Her first book, The Day Parliament Burned Down, published in 2012, received rave reviews and was shortlisted for the Longman/History Today Prize and Political History Book of the Year. It won the inaugural Political Book Awards’ Political Book of the Year in 2013.

This talk will start at 11am on Zoom and can be viewed on line until midnight on 26 November.

Before the Victorians reinvented it, the traditional Christmas was a very different affair. Devoid of Father Christmas, Christmas trees and commercialisation, the emphasis was on gentility, tradition and sociability. Jane Austen set many scenes from her novels during the Christmas period exactly because this was a time for social gatherings. We’ll look at the balls, parties, dinners, games, traditions and celebrations that filled the festive season. Novels, letters, paintings and engravings are used to bring the Georgian Christmas to life. 

 Dr Claire Walsh

MA V&A and RCA; PhD European University Institute, Florence. Having previously worked at the V&A and lectured there and for the University of Warwick, Claire now lectures for the Open University. She has lectured widely in Britain; at the Courtauld Institute of Art and Museum of London amongst others, and to specialist groups including the Art Fund, the Ceramics Society, the Costume Society and the Ancient Monuments Society. She has also lectured in Europe, the USA (including Yale and the Huntington) and Canada and has numerous publications.

This talk will start on Zoom at 11am or can be viewed on line until midnight on 29 October

Andrew Prince is a respected jewellery craftsman, historian and lecturer. He has an in depth knowledge not only of jewellery but also fashion history and historical portraits. He was commissioned to make many pieces for the series Downton Abbey.

This talk will start at 2pm on Zoom or can be viewed on line until midnight on 10 September.

Cleopatra, the woman for whose love’s sake Antony is imagined to have given up the chance to rule the Roman world, has been inspiring painters, poets and (more recently) film-makers for over two millennia. Their gorgeously voluptuous depictions of her offer insights into changing concepts of beauty, and into the racial and sexual assumptions underlying them.  Showing images ranging from Roman portrait busts, through medieval illuminations, the glorious works of Renaissance masters like Michelangelo, the splendour of Tiepolo and the exoticism of Gustave Moreau to 20th century film stars (Theda Bara, Claudette Colbert, Vivien Leigh, Elizabeth Taylor and the Carry On team’s Amanda Barry), I will show how Cleopatra became a screen onto which artists have projected their wildly differing fantasies about exotic danger and erotic bliss.

Stimulating talks presented with style and humour.....

Pubs and their signs are a fundamental part of our history and cultural heritage. In this colourful and entertaining lecture John shows some of the most interesting and distinctive signs before exploring the fascinating stories behind the origin of some of their peculiar names. Who could fail to be intrigued by ‘The Bucket of Blood’, the ‘Cow and Snuffers’ or even  the ‘Eager Poet’ – and who on earth was ‘Blind Jack’?

John Ericson

Formerly a lecturer at the University of Bath where he was Director of Studies in the School of Education with responsibility for the professional development of teachers. He has worked extensively overseas as an educational consultant and this has given him the opportunity to give lectures and presentations at conferences all over the world. In 2011 and again in 2017 he undertook extensive lecture tours of Australia and New Zealand and has been a popular speaker on the NADFAS circuit for a number of years.

Mr Andrew Davies 

Extra-Mural Tutor for London, Essex and The Open University; Author of 9 books, including The East End Nobody Knows; frequent contributor to radio and television; has lectured all over the world; organises walks to complement his lectures. 

From Pepys' Diary (1660-1669) which covers Restoration, Plague and Fire to Hogarth's 'Rake's Progress', 'Gin Lane' and 'Marriage a la Mode' - what an incomparable panorama of a bustling and always changing city. We will explore the lives, friends, family and work of both men, very different but alike in their fascination with London.

Peter Medhurt’s work as singer, pianist and lecturer-recitalist has taken him all over the world, he has presented events at the Barbican, St John’s Smith Square.

His face is familiar to audiences of music societies, regional theatres and the British Trust and the Arts Society. 

Peter Medhurst traces the progress of the English Christmas Carol through seven centuries of continuous development and explores the many fascinating stories that lie behind our popular seasonal songs.

Carols discussed include Angelus ad virginiem, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, The First Nowell,  I saw three ships, While Shepherds Watched their Flocks by Night, Christians Awake, Hark! the Herald Angels Sing, Adeste fideles, In the Bleak Midwinter.

This talk will provide a whistle-stop tour of the history of food as an artistic medium, starting with 16th century sugar sculpture and venturing all the way up to 3D dessert printing and beyond!

This exploration into the realms of dessert as a spectacle includes an accompanying display to illustrate and enhance the historic subject.

Tasha Marks is an award-winning food historian and artist, who explores the relationship between food, art and history. Her practice, AVM Curiosities, champions the use of food as an artistic medium, with projects ranging from museum-style exhibitions and sculptural installations, to interactive lectures and limited-edition confectionery. Recent academic achievements include publication in the Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets, where Marks authored the entry on Mrs Beeton, one of the Victorian era’s most influential cooks.

Victorian designer William Morris was indeed a man of many faces. He is probably best known today as the creator of wallpaper, fabrics and stained glass windows, but he was also a poet, artist, philosopher, typographer and socialist. What is less well known about him is his involvement in one of the greatest health scandals of the 19th century and his links to the richest copper and arsenic mine in Europe. 

 Dr Geri Parlby, BA (Hons), MA (Courtauld), PhD, FRSA is a former Fleet Street journalist and film publicist. She has a first class honours degree in History and Theology, A Masters in History of Art from the Courtauld Institute and a Theology doctorate from Roehampton University in London. She has been lecturing for the past 11 years both in the UK and internationally and is also principle lecturer on the NADFAS South West Area’s History of Art Course and is an Honorary Research Fellow at Roehampton University and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

In 1915 Churchill was rescued from depression by the ‘muse of painting’. Painting was the mainstay that enabled one of our greatest national leaders to achieve what he did. Churchill’s paintings record landscapes from the Riviera, to Blenheim, Chartwell and Marrakech. The most fascinating aspects of this exploration of a talent beyond the mere amateur is the role it played in his personal and political life, the restorative power of the process of painting, and the insight it allows us into the art of his age. Churchill took lessons from Lavery, Sickert and Nicholson, and the choices he made tell us much about the colour, texture and direction of art in the early-twentieth century. 

Dr Claire Walsh has a BA Hons. History and Theory of Art, University of Kent
MA History of Design, Victoria & Albert Museum/ Royal College of Art
PhD History, The European University Institute, Florence

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.

 Mark Hill is an author, publisher, a Freeman of the Worshipful Company of Arts Scholars and the City of London and a leading dealer in post-war Czech and 20th century decorative glass. He studied History of Art & Architecture and began his career as a porter and junior cataloguer at Bonhams, before moving to Sotheby's as a specialist in the Collectors department. In 2005, Mark founded his own publishing company and has since published extensively on 20th century design and decorative arts. He is also an accredited lecturer with The Arts Society since 2014 and lectures at renowned venues across the world, including the V&A in London and the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

You might recognise Mark Hill from the BBC Antiques Roadshow, where he has been a miscellaneous and collectables expert since 2007. He has also presented several BBC Two series on antiques and collecting - Cracking Antiques, Antiques Uncovered and Collectaholics.

Founded by Charles Tiffany with a loan of just  $1000, The firm of  Tiffany & Company, New York grew from a small bric -à-brac shop  to become purveyors of the finest luxury goods and the world's leading jewellers. The business  evolved even further under Charles's immensely gifted son Louis, who not only completely redesigned the now lost interior of the White house but spent over thirty years  developing the manufacture of the most exquisite glass. From wonderful vases and lamps to the diamonds worn by Audrey Hepburn in "Breakfast at Tiffany's" this is a fascinating tale of how art and luxury came together to create one of the the world's most iconic brands

Brian Healey has been senior modern languages teacher in an independent grammar school for many years, has also enjoyed a successful parallel career since the 1980s as a professional artist and interior designer. Since 2006 I have been regularly appointed to a number of prestigious ocean and river cruise lines, either as resident artist, guest lecturer on art history or as destination speaker for more than forty countries. Most recently this work has successfully extended to art guiding through important towns and museums in France, Belgium, Holland and Spain. 

The story of one of the greatest creative collaborations of all:  Serge Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes, whose team of dancers, choreographers, and costume and set designers transformed expectations of what a night in the theatre could be, and the circumstances behind its most notorious stage work of all. Sandy examines the build-up to the Rite of Spring’s premiere in Paris, takes a look at the original costumes, plays excerpts from this fascinatingly inventive score, and explores what divided opinions of that first-night audience quite so dramatically.  No, nothing could top the riot at the Rite in 1913…

Mr Sandy Burnett is one of the UK’s most authoritative broadcasters in the field of classical music. His broadcasts, interviews, and lectures are all underpinned by the practical understanding that comes from his busy life as a practising musician.

An extended spell with BBC Radio 3, starting in 1994 and continuing till 2007, saw him firmly established as one of the network’s most familiar presenters, admired by many classical music lovers. His many credits include the flagship breakfast programme Morning on 3, live Proms, concerts from the Edinburgh International Festival, as well as countless studio broadcasts and interviews with classical music’s top artists. He enjoys a close ongoing relationship with RTÉ Lyric FM, and has also worked for RTÉ’s Radio 1, Wigmore Hall, Linn Records, Intermusica, and the City of London Festival. 

Sandy became an accredited lecturer with The Arts Society in 2017. His lectures deconstruct and analyse some of the greatest works in the classical music repertoire, while placing them firmly in the cultural context of their time.

Origins: Cave Paintings to the Greeks

Over 30,000 years ago mankind began to make sense of his place in the world through art and myth. In this lecture Giles will explore how stories told in the primitive world can still relate to us all today.

Greeks: Where We Began

In a period of just over 100 years a city state called Athens invented a new form of communal expression called theatre and found that living amongst them happened to be four of the greatest writers the world has ever known; Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes. It all starts here!

Giles Ramsay is Course Leader in Theatre at The Victoria and Albert Museum in London, an accredited Arts Society (formerly NADFAS) lecturer and a former Fellow of St. Chad's College, Durham University. He is the Founding Director of the charity Developing Arts.

There are many illustrious gardens on the shores of Lakes Como and Maggiore in the mountainous far north of Italy.  
The ones described in this lecture include the Villa Cicogna Mozzoni, with its 16th century parterre and water staircase; Isola Bella, a baroque extravaganza on an island in the middle of an alpine lake; Villa Melzi and Villa Carlotta, two lakeshore gardens made by rival Napoleonic grandees; and the Villa San Remigio, a garden created by two Edwardian lovers, one Irish, one Neapolitan, as a kind of alfresco theatre for celebrating their love of art and nature.  
These considerable achievements and others are set in a climate ideal for garden-making among some of the world's most glorious scenery, where Wordsworth, Shelley, Liszt and Bellini found inspiration.  

The photo is the garden of VILLA CICOGNA MOZZONI 

Mr Steven Desmond is an independent landscape consultant specialising in historic gardens and architecture since 1985; freelance lecturer, including Universities of Bristol and Oxford; specialist tour leader and lecturer in Britain, Ireland, France, Germany and Italy. ADFAS lecture tour of Australia in 2010. Writer and broadcaster on historic gardens and related topics. Steven Desmond's book Gardens of the Italian Lakes, with photography by Marianne Majerus, is published by Frances Lincoln

Dr Graham Griffiths

Lecturer, Author, Conductor & Pianist

Graham divides his time between City University London where he is Honorary Research Fellow (Musicology) and The Arts Society for whom he is an accredited speaker offering lecture-recitals on Mozart, Schubert, Stravinsky and Kashperova. 

He is the author of a critically acclaimed study of Stravinsky, Stravinsky's Piano: Genesis of a Musical Language (Cambridge University Press, 2013)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

"The Astonishing Master Mozart comes to London"

This entertaining and informative presentation tells of the Mozart family's residence in London (1764-5) when the 8 year old Wolfgang Amadeus befriended George III and became the subject of medical research.  Dr. Griffiths illustrates his talk at the piano with explanations and performances of Mozart's witty and precocious miniatures.  Music by Mozart's own child-prodigy Franz Xaver brings the 'talk' to an emotional conclusion.

Since earliest times artists and scientists have tried to capture real life (movement and perspective) through art and mechanical devices.   The Victorians used the new science of optics to create perspective machines, persistence of vision devices, panoramic illusions, three dimensional imagery and moving pictures in large scale theatrical extravaganzas and children's toys.   This lavishly illustrated talk takes us on the journey from cave art to the invention of cinema in 1895.    We explore the optical shows and devices that led to the birth of the movies including peepshows, dioramas, panoramas, zoetropes, magic lanterns, phantasmagoria shows and much more.    Victorians were fascinated by these visual wonders and audiences still are today.

Andrew Gill has collected optical antiques for forty years and lectured on them for the past twenty.    He now gives illustrated talks and seminars on the wider field of Victorian optical entertainments.    He owns an historical photographic archive and has written over one hundred booklets that combine Victorian travel guides with photos from his collection.    He has a website "Magic Lantern World" - www.magiclanternist.com.

In 1883 Monet moved into Le Pressoir, Giverny. Below his house he created gardens whose colours evolved vibrantly or contemplatively under the Norman skies. Initially he painted the rural motifs of the poplars and grainstacks before devoting himself to the floral canvas of his own making until his death in 1926. Botanically and horticulturally skilled, Monet grew the latest in irises and water lilies, watching them as the day reflected its course in their shapes, moments captured for eternity in over 500 paintings. The meticulous restoration of Giverny provides the canvas to explore the man, his paintings and his gardens.

Caroline Holmes is a garden historian who lectures internationally, delving into the myriad ways people and plants have historically shaped landscapes and what we can learn from them. She leads and lectures on tours to France and Italy, as well as cruises. She has written 11 books and is an award winning broadcaster. 

Why were foreign painters preferred by the aristocracy in London to native-born English painters, why did foreigners come in the first place, what was their motivation and what was the impact of foreigners in London on English art and art practise?    The talk will look at the various formats and uses of art, tracing foreign artists from the Tudor period through to the Renaissance and Baroque, looking at their origins and how they came to work in England.    It will examine the contributions of artists such as Holbein, Gerrit van Honthorst, Marcus Gheeraerts the younger, Lucas and Susanna Horenbout, Isaac Oliver, Paulus van Somer, Van Dyck, Peter Lely and Rubens.    This lecture will look at how these artists influenced the British School of painting and assess their legacy. 

Leslie Primo is a graduate with a degree in Art History and an MA in Renaissance Studies from Birkbeck, University College, London.  Specialising in early Medieval and Renaissance studies.

He has worked at the National Gallery, London since 2000 and The Arts Society since 2009.

He currently lectures at the National Gallery, the National Portrait Gallery, and teaches a variety of art history courses at Imperial College, London – South Kensington campus, the City Literary, Covent Garden, London and Bishopsgate Institute, Liverpool Street, London.

This talk explores the way the East India Company developed its trade and exchange of ideas between East and West. It focuses on textile design but includes wallpaper, porcelain and furniture, as well as the vast trade in spices and tea.  We look first at the 17th century and the methods used for sending out patterns to be copied by the local weavers and dyers, paving the way for the production of chintz.    In the 18th century the Company rapidly expanded in the Far East, often using Western patterns which were copied for export.  Finally the focus is on Chinoiserie, a fantasy style produced by Western artists based on the exoticism of "Cathay" combined with Western Baroque and Rococo styles.

Viv Lawes is a lecturer, curator and author with twenty-five years' experience in the art market.     She is a senior lecturer in the humanities faculty of the City & Guilds of London Art School and a visiting lecturer at Sotheby's Institute and L'Institut d'Etudes Superieures des Arts (IESA), London.    She has written for many publications including The Art Newspaper, Antiques Trade Gazette, The Guardian, Art & Auction, Country Life and The Royal Academy Magazine.

This lecture looks at the life and work of the greatest English architect, Sir Christopher Wren.    It begins with a summary of Wren's life including his education and his work as a medic, a scientist and as the leading astronomer of his day.    This is followed by a review of Wren's architectural influences and achievements with digital photographs of all his major buildings, such as Trinity College Library in Cambridge, The Royal Hospitals at Chelsea and Greenwich and, of course, St Paul's Cathedral.    The talk then focuses in detail on Wren's City churches with their incredible variety and elegant steeples, a group of churches unique in the world.    They are of exceptional originality and architectural merit; their interiors feature the craftsmanship of the great woodcarvers, stonemasons and plasterers working alongside Wren in the post-Great Fire rebuilding programme.

Tony Tucker is a City of London Guide and a Chairman, City of London Guide Lecturers’ Association , a trustee of the Friends of the City Churches and the author of "The Visitor's Guide to the City of London Churches" and "Sword Rests of the City". He has an MA in Modern History, Oriel College, Oxford and has 40 years working in the City.
 

There's more to the world of street art than Banksy.    Hidden Canvases is a beginner's guide to the biggest art movement since pop art.    From train writing in New York to interactive technology that brings murals to life, the concept of uncommissioned public art is a very different beast to that which it once was.    This talk explores the key stages in street art's growth examining the different elements and styles that comprise the scene with no rules.    From the international superstars to the local underground heroes you're guaranteed to leave knowing your Invader from your Aryz and, who knows, you might start  looking at the world a little differently.

Doug Gillen is heavily involved in documenting the street art scene in London and abroad through his project Fifth Wall TV and can offer a genuine insight into this world.    He previously lectured for London Art and More and, when not filming, he is an East End tour guide for Alternative London, specialising in culture and art.

This lecture explores the fashion for porcelain figure sculpture in the eighteenth century, beginning as a form of table decoration and subsequently moving to the mantelshelf and china cabinet; and how these figures reflect eighteenth century society in miniature.    During the lecture you will meet characters from the Commedia del'Arte and the English stage, beggars and pedlars, exotic figures from distant lands, lovers and musicians, shepherds and shepherdesses, the gods of Olympus - even the odd monkey!

Jane Gardiner trained at the V&A and went on to become a Research Assistant and Lecturer in the V&A Education Department, specialising in early European ceramics and glass and 17th and 18th century design.   Later she was invited to join Sotheby's Institute of Art and became a Deputy Director of Sotheby's UK.    She has lectured for London University, the National Trust, the Art Fund, L'Institute d'Etudes Superieures des Arts, Paris, on board cruise ships and at antique fairs and interior design shows in America. 

This lecture examines the complex and fascinating story of how pantomime developed out of its Greek and Roman roots through the religious plays of the middle ages to the Italian Commedia Dell' Arte.  It looks at the characters of the Harlequinade and how actors like Grimaldi, the most famous clown of all with his sausages and red hot poker, and music hall stars and today's television actors have contributed to the art of pantomime.

Jane Tapley is currently the Special Events Organiser at the Theatre Royal, Bath,  organises book launches and interviews with authors, and lectures extensively on Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Georgian Theatre and Food.

The collaboration of Sir Edwin Lutyens produced a unique interaction between architecture and planting, seen at its best at Munstead Wood, Hestercombe and Folly Farm.

Dr Mervyn Miller is an architect, town planner and historian.  He is Life President of the Hampstead Garden Suburb Trust, Life President of Letchworth Garden City Society and the Architectural Advisor to the Lutyens Trust.  He is a lecturer and prolific author.