17 September 2019
ROYAL COLLECTORS: QUEEN VICTORIA AND PRINCE ALBERT AND THEIR ART
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were keen amateur artists. They exchanged gifts of paintings, sculpture and jewellery every birthday and Christmas.
Susan Owens
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Festive Drinks & Mince Pies event on Tuesday 19 November 2019, and;
- Visit to Windsor Castle on Monday 02 December
15 October 2019
IN SIGHT OF THE DOWNS: SUSSEX, A CENTRE FOR 20th CENTURY BRITISH ART
Rupert Toovey is a local auctioneer and valuer and also an ordained priest. He is a passionate advocate and sponsor of art and heritage in Sussex.
Rupert Toovey
Followed by WELCOME PARTY FOR NEW MEMBERS.
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Festive Drinks & Mince Pies event on Tuesday 19 November 2019, and;
- Visit to Windsor Castle on Monday 02 December
19 November 2019
CHARLES DICKENS, THE MAN AND HIS LIFE THROUGH HIS CHARACTERS
Bertie Pearce is a member of the Inner Magic Circle and is also a Professor of Punch and Judy. Look forward to a ‘Truly Dickensian Experience’.
Bertie Pearce
Followed by FESTIVE DRINKS AND MINCE PIES
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Visit to Windsor Castle on Monday 02 December
21 January 2020
THE GREAT EXHIBITION
What were the real aims behind the Exhibition, and how were they fulfilled? Why was it such a huge success?
Prasannajit De Silva
NOTE – Sale of tickets for Tour of the Albert Hall (and in the afternoon group visit to Kensington Palace or free time) on Tuesday 28 April has been postponed to 18 February & 17 March lectures
18 February 2020
THREE BALTIC CAPITALS
This lecture looks at the rich cultural heritage of three distinctive capitals – Vilnius, Riga and Tallin.
Professor Anne Anderson
Anne has provided a reading list for those who would like a more in-depth look into the subject of the lecture.
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Tour of the Albert Hall and in the afternoon group visit to Kensington Palace or free time on Tuesday 28 April, and;
- Champs Hill – Sussex Connections Exhibition on Thursday 14 May
17 March 2020
CANCELLED
Note: March Lecture Change
We have a late change to our March Lecture. Instead of the Art of Dance, we will be hearing from Dr Tom Flynn on;
THE 20th CENTURY ART MARKET
Dr Flynn is a UK-based art historian, writer and art consultant. He has published widely on the global art market, contemporary sculpture, museology and art and design history. He is the author of The A to Z of the International Art Market published by Bloomsbury Press in 2016.
Dr Tom Flynn
THE ART OF DANCE
Jennifer Toynbee Holmes
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Tour of the Albert Hall and in the afternoon group visit to Kensington Palace or free time on Tuesday 28 April, and;
- Champs Hill – Sussex Connections Exhibition on Thursday 14 May
21 April 2020
CANCELLED
PASSIONATE POTTERS, de MORGAN – LEACH
William Morris led a revolution against the products of the machine age. William de Morgan was a friend of Morris who rediscovered the secrets of Near Eastern lustre glazes. In contrast, the eccentric and argumentative Martin Brothers created a range of elaborate salt glazed pots unparalleled in their imaginative breadth. Sir Edmund Elton, the ‘potter baronet’ made pots which combine startling glazes with exotic forms. And finally, Bernard Leach, the father of English studio pottery, not only married the arts of Japan and England but created a legacy that is still alive today. This lecture explores the lives of these truly passionate potters and celebrates their extraordinary and beautiful creations.
Julian Richards
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Champs Hill – Sussex Connections Exhibition on Thursday 14 May, and;
- Guided Tour of Lewes on Tuesday 07 July
19 May 2020
CANCELLED
THE BAUHAUS
This is the story of Germany’s most famous design school, bitterly attacked in its day during the 1920’s but one which has had a profound effect on modern buildings and interiors.
Anthea Streeter
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Guided Tour of Lewes on Tuesday 07 July
16 June 2020
CANCELLED
SEX IN THE CITY – HOGARTH AND 18TH CENTURY LONDON
This lecture looks at how Hogarth used his work to wage his war against London’s sex trade and child poverty. He then progressed to be a successful painter and philanthropist.
Julia Musgrave
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Guided Tour of Lewes on Tuesday 07 July
- Knole House in September
21 July 2020
ZOOM LECTURE ON ‘MUSIC IN ART – Late Medieval to Renaissance c1450-1600’
This lecture is to be held online using Zoom. Peter Medhurst will be giving the lecture on ‘Music in Art’ accompanied by music. A link will be sent to all members on email.
Some of the greatest artists in history – Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio, Vermeer, Gainsborough – have invoked the world of music into the heart of many of their paintings resulting in a harmonious combination of two much loved disciplines of the arts. However, the viewer of these scenes should always be a little on his guard, since references to music are invariably laced with powerful allusion and complex symbolism. With a musicologist’s eye, Peter Medhurst views, discusses and analyses a range of magnificent paintings that stem from the Late Medieval and Renaissance eras. At the same time, to add a further dimension to the lecture, he complements the paintings discussed with a selection of period music sung and played by him on the harpsichord, the virginals and the organ. Paintings include works by Geertgen Tot Sint Jans, Lorenzo Costa, Francesco Raibolini, Titian and Anon.
Peter Medhurst
21 July 2020
CANCELLED
AGM at 10am. Doors open at 9.30am
‘YOU RANG M’LUD’. ARCHITECTURE OF HOUSEHOLD STAFF IN LATE MEDIEVAL CASTLES
We will view castles through the eyes of the ordinary folk. This is a story of masons, carpenters, cooks, clerks, servants and stable hands.
James Wright
AND – Tickets on sale for;
- Knole House in September
15 September 2020 10:30am
NEW!
ZOOM LECTURE ON ‘THE IMPERIAL EASTER EGGS OF CARL FABERGÉ – before the Revolution’
This lecture is to be held online using Zoom.
Between 1885 and 1916, Carl Fabergé made 50 jewelled eggs – Easter presents from Russia’s last two emperors to their wives.
They are examples of the jeweller’s art and the vulgar playthings of a decadent court. Fabergé was given almost total artistic freedom but had to conform to 3 rules…
- Each year’s present should be egg shaped
- That it should contain a surprise to amuse or delight it’s recipient
- And that it should be different from any predecessor
The result was a series of creations demonstrating ingenuity and creativity.
The lecture is illustrated with pictures of the Romanovs and their palaces, and, of course, with photographs of the eggs themselves.
Enjoy another lecture from Toby, Grandson of the founder of the Faber publishing company.
Toby Faber
20 October 2020 10:30am
NEW!
ZOOM LECTURE ON ‘THE BED IN ART – TITIAN TO EMIN’
This lecture is to be held online using Zoom.
The bed has been the site of multiple encounters in art from Titian’s stunning mythologies through Manet’s Olympia, Picasso’s nudes, and the abject of Tracey Emin’s infamous My Bed.
But if the bed has been linked to passion, it has also been linked to death and this lecture explores it’s manifestations in the art of Caravaggio, Munch, Klimt and others.
Be inspired, informed and a little shocked.
Dr Marie-Anne Mancio
17 November 2020 4:00pm (Tea time – enjoy with a piece of cake!)
NEW!
ZOOM LECTURE ON ‘PICTURING THE NATIVITY, PAINTING BY NUMBERS’
This lecture is to be held online using Zoom.
15th century artists reinvent the scriptures.
The description of the Nativity in Luke’s gospel is brief only mentioning the Holy family. Artists have included a full supporting cast of animals, shepherds and midwives. Italian and Flemish paintings will be explored.
The result is touching, amusing, at times blasphemous but never dull.