3 NOVEMBER 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
AGM (MEMBERS ONLY) AT 1:30PM
Damien Hirst is the most famous British artist since Henry Moore. Not even Francis Bacon had such a huge international presence. And yet in his home country he is often seen as a practical joker, pulling the wool over the eyes of the public, and not making proper art at all. This lecture aims to dispel this and show that he is a deeply serious artist making work that is significant and influential.
Presented by David Worthington
1 DECEMBER 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
The description of the Nativity in S. Luke is brief mentioning only the Holy family. But this did not prevent artists including a full supporting cast and incidental props to embellish both the mystical and maternal aspects, thereby capturing the imagination and empathy of the believer. So by the 15th century, the story had been expanded to include animals, shepherds, midwives, even contemporary portraits. The lecture will explore this by looking at Italian and Flemish paintings on the subject and the writings which supplied the stories. The result is touching, amusing, at times bordering on the blasphemous, but never dull.
MINCE PIES AND MULLED WINE FOLLOWING THE TALK
Presented by Shirley Smith
1 SEPTEMBER 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
As a child Antony Penrose first met Picasso when he visited the Penrose family home of Farley Farm, in Chiddingly, East Sussex in 1950. They became instant friends and invented their own boisterous game of pretend bull fights. In the excitement Antony bit Picasso, and Picasso bit him right back, but it did not spoil the friendship and during the many visits he made to Picasso’s homes in France Antony felt very much at home. He loved the menagerie of pets – the live ones and those Picasso made as sculptures that seemed alive. Antony’s parents were Roland Penrose, the curator and biographer of Picasso, and Lee Miller, the photographer. Picasso painted her portrait six times and she photographed him more than 1,000 times and her images illustrate Antony’s entertaining and amusing account of life around Picasso. This lecture also covers the process of writing and the design of the book which has been very favourably reviewed and is a best seller.
Presented by Antony Penrose
6 OCTOBER 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
Fine art has provided advertisers and their agencies with a great deal of material to use in their creative campaigns. Tony describes some of the processes by which these advertisements have been created and why the works of Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael and Michelangelo have been a particularly rich source. From the Renaissance through to the present day fine art continues to provide opportunities to enhance Brand imagery with admiration, humour, satire and irony. In an entertaining and informative lecture Tony uses a wide range of visuals and video to show examples of the original works, the creative process and the (not always entirely successful) advertisements that are the end result.
Presented by Tony Rawlins
2 JUNE 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
Wine has been part of our global society for over 7,000 years, and the story tells of its origin and appearance in all societies across the Mediterranean and through Europe. There is rich evidence of the role wine has played in these societies and how it became an important component of faith, well-being and festivity. From the kwevris of Georgia in 5,000 B.C., the symposia in ancient Greece, the thermopolia of Pompeii, the hospices of Europe, to the dining tables of fine society wine has been ever present. Drawings, paintings, engravings, buildings, pottery and wine labels themselves all contribute to the story.
Presented by David Wright
5 MAY 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
This is the story of the epic rivalry between the two giants of British art, J.M.W. Turner and John Constable. As unlike in background and temperament as their paintings were in style, these two creative geniuses transformed the art of landscape. This lecture/study day sets them head-to-head and examines their differences, their similarities, their battles and their shared triumphs. But who will ultimately be crowned star painter? As well as giving an overview of Turner and Constable, the subject provides an enjoyable overview of the British art world during the nineteenth century.
Presented by Nicola Moorby
7 APRIL 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
EVOKING THE SPIRIT OF ROMANCE AND ADVENTURE
If you think of St Pancras International or New York Grand Central you imagine long romantic journeys. You know they are special places promising excitement and adventure. But there are dozens of other glorious stations in the UK and abroad. We will take a journey around some of the most evocative and splendid stations in the world. We will look not only at the magnificence of the architecture and the brilliant engineering but will discover numerous artworks within the stations and examine many depictions of stations in art – like Claude Monet’s Gare St Lazare or William Powell Frith’s Paddington. It may sound a bit anoraky, but it’s definitely not. It’s lavish, colourful and fun.
Presented by Ian Swankie
3 NOVEMBER 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
AGM (MEMBERS ONLY) AT 1:30PM
Damien Hirst is the most famous British artist since Henry Moore. Not even Francis Bacon had such a huge international presence. And yet in his home country he is often seen as a practical joker, pulling the wool over the eyes of the public, and not making proper art at all. This lecture aims to dispel this and show that he is a deeply serious artist making work that is significant and influential.
Presented by David Worthington
1 DECEMBER 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
The description of the Nativity in S. Luke is brief mentioning only the Holy family. But this did not prevent artists including a full supporting cast and incidental props to embellish both the mystical and maternal aspects, thereby capturing the imagination and empathy of the believer. So by the 15th century, the story had been expanded to include animals, shepherds, midwives, even contemporary portraits. The lecture will explore this by looking at Italian and Flemish paintings on the subject and the writings which supplied the stories. The result is touching, amusing, at times bordering on the blasphemous, but never dull.
MINCE PIES AND MULLED WINE FOLLOWING THE TALK
Presented by Shirley Smith
7 JULY 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
In the depths of the Mexican jungle lies an enchanted valley in which strange ruins tower over waterfalls and pools. It seems like the remains of a lost civilisation, but the arches and stairways were built only in the last century by Edward James, a rich English eccentric and Surrealist. Ranging around the world and across the 20th century, this colourful lecture tells the story of Edward James and Las Pozas, introducing along the way an array of intriguing characters, and exploring the wider theme of the modern artist-gardener.
Presented by James Russell
TEA AND CAKES TO FOLLOW THE TALK.
1 SEPTEMBER 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
As a child Antony Penrose first met Picasso when he visited the Penrose family home of Farley Farm, in Chiddingly, East Sussex in 1950. They became instant friends and invented their own boisterous game of pretend bull fights. In the excitement Antony bit Picasso, and Picasso bit him right back, but it did not spoil the friendship and during the many visits he made to Picasso’s homes in France Antony felt very much at home. He loved the menagerie of pets – the live ones and those Picasso made as sculptures that seemed alive. Antony’s parents were Roland Penrose, the curator and biographer of Picasso, and Lee Miller, the photographer. Picasso painted her portrait six times and she photographed him more than 1,000 times and her images illustrate Antony’s entertaining and amusing account of life around Picasso. This lecture also covers the process of writing and the design of the book which has been very favourably reviewed and is a best seller.
Presented by Antony Penrose
6 OCTOBER 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
Fine art has provided advertisers and their agencies with a great deal of material to use in their creative campaigns. Tony describes some of the processes by which these advertisements have been created and why the works of Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael and Michelangelo have been a particularly rich source. From the Renaissance through to the present day fine art continues to provide opportunities to enhance Brand imagery with admiration, humour, satire and irony. In an entertaining and informative lecture Tony uses a wide range of visuals and video to show examples of the original works, the creative process and the (not always entirely successful) advertisements that are the end result.
Presented by Tony Rawlins
7 APRIL 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
This is the story of the epic rivalry between the two giants of British art, J.M.W. Turner and John Constable. As unlike in background and temperament as their paintings were in style, these two creative geniuses transformed the art of landscape. This lecture/study day sets them head-to-head and examines their differences, their similarities, their battles and their shared triumphs. But who will ultimately be crowned star painter? As well as giving an overview of Turner and Constable, the subject provides an enjoyable overview of the British art world during the nineteenth century.
Presented by Nicola Moorby
2 JUNE 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
Wine has been part of our global society for over 7,000 years, and the story tells of its origin and appearance in all societies across the Mediterranean and through Europe. There is rich evidence of the role wine has played in these societies and how it became an important component of faith, well-being and festivity. From the kwevris of Georgia in 5,000 B.C., the symposia in ancient Greece, the thermopolia of Pompeii, the hospices of Europe, to the dining tables of fine society wine has been ever present. Drawings, paintings, engravings, buildings, pottery and wine labels themselves all contribute to the story.
Presented by David Wright
7 APRIL 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
EVOKING THE SPIRIT OF ROMANCE AND ADVENTURE
If you think of St Pancras International or New York Grand Central you imagine long romantic journeys. You know they are special places promising excitement and adventure. But there are dozens of other glorious stations in the UK and abroad. We will take a journey around some of the most evocative and splendid stations in the world. We will look not only at the magnificence of the architecture and the brilliant engineering but will discover numerous artworks within the stations and examine many depictions of stations in art – like Claude Monet’s Gare St Lazare or William Powell Frith’s Paddington. It may sound a bit anoraky, but it’s definitely not. It’s lavish, colourful and fun.
Presented by Ian Swankie
3 MARCH 2020
2.00pm – 3.00pm
SPRING LUNCH AT 12:30PM
Tickets for lunch will need to be pre-booked for both members and guests.
In the second half of the nineteenth-century an extraordinary group of purpose-built studio-houses were built on the edge of London’s Holland Park. At their centre was the house built by Frederic Leighton from the mid-1860s. With its vast studio and exotic Arab Hall it provided an inspiration to other artists who commissioned houses of their own. Combining domestic accommodation with studio space and space in which to entertain, these houses provide fascinating insights into the wealth, status and taste of successful artists of the period. The lecture explores the houses of the Holland Park Circle to determine why these artists invested so much in the creation of their homes and the uses they then put them to.
Presented by Daniel Robbins