An Art History course at the XVA Gallery with Rose Balston

Transcription

1 An Art History course at the XVA Gallery with Rose Balston Art and Revolution: Europe in the 18 th & 19 th century Rose Balston, founding director of Art History UK and Art History UAE, is based parttime in Dubai as a freelance lecturer, guide and art consultant. She has just finished filming a BBC documentary (as presenter and researcher) on the art scene in the Gulf, to be released in early 2019, and co-presented Fake! The Great Masterpiece Challenge with Giles Coren, which aired in March She has commentated for BBC Breakfast, Sky News, Al-Jazeera and RT. With an MA in art history from Edinburgh University, Rose is Condé Nast Traveller London Art Expert. For a short film of Rose discussing Velazquez in the National Gallery, please follow the link. Beyond delivering courses, gallery visits and lectures in the UAE and wider Gulf, Rose designs and leads high-end European cultural trips. Her clients include the V&A, Norton Rose, Aon, Freshfields, Linklaters, the Bank of England, American Express, Citi, Montblanc, Young Presidents Organisation, a range of top private members clubs and Britain's leading schools, and guests of Claridge's, the Connaught, Dorchester, Savoy, Four Seasons, Goring and the Emirates Palace.

2 Wednesday 3 October The Grand Tour: Canaletto and the Lure of Venice The Pizza di San Marco Looking West, Venice by Canaletto Venice in the 18 th century was in a serious state of financial and political decline. Yet true to the character of this extraordinary city, La Serenissima went down partying with her uniquely talented artists recording the scene. Tourists flooded in from the continent, particularly young English gentlemen with a penchant for spending money, gambling the night away, making love to beautiful Venetian courtesans and buying copious amounts of art. Taking their treasures back to Britain, their aristocratic palaces and country houses were transformed. The Grand Tour s most celebrated artist was without question Giovanni Canaletto, who ended up following these wealthy patrons back to London. In this talk we ll discuss the evolution of the famous Grand Tour and look in detail at the life and works of Canaletto and his contemporaries.

3 Wednesday 10 October Toffs, Taverns, Whores and Hoorays! Hogarth s London Detail from Hogarth s Marriage-a-la-Mode This talk will lead us deep into Georgian London and Hogarth s chaotic, boisterous and actionpacked narratives. His bitingly satirical paintings reveal all of life s drama from infidelities and lust, to gambling, STDs, suicide and murder. Beginning with Tom Rakewell at the Sir John Soane Museum, we will learn about the dangers of inheriting vast sums of money and how not to spend it. We will also look closely at his Marriage à-la-mode in the National Gallery an extraordinarily punchy, yet eye-wateringly witty depiction of 18 th century London and the problems with arranged marriages. We will learn about the impact Hogarth had on the printing trade, as well future satirical artists in England.

4 Wednesday 17 October Arbiters of Taste: Lord Burlington and the Neo-Classical in England The Hall at Syon House After the Great Fire of London the English Baroque become the architectural style of choice, yet things changed after Inigo Jones visited Italy and discovered the clear classical style of Andrea Palladio. For a few years this style flourished, until it was cut off at the head with the onset of the English Civil War. It was not until the 18 th century that the style re-emerged, championed by the self-styled Arbiter of Taste Richard Boyle, 3 rd Earl of Burlington. Slamming the grotesque style of Nicholas Hawksmoor (one of my favourite architects!) Burlington built palaces in London including one that is now the Royal Academy of Arts and created about him a rally of artists and musicians to help re-build the taste of Britain.

5 Wednesday 24 October The Art of Portraiture: Reynolds and Gainsborough Self-Portrait by Sir Joshua Reynolds The Golden Age of portraiture in England was the 18 th century. No longer the preserve of royalty, the upper classes had entered a new era of prosperity and portraits of oneself or one s ancestors became a coveted symbol of wealth and status. Inspiration was taken from Anthony Van Dyck and then given fresh impetus by our heroes for this talk - Joshua Reynolds, Thomas Gainsborough and George Romney. Reynolds was the driving force behind the art scene in London, and with his Grand Manner style of portraiture (and his extremely dubious use of bitumen), we ll see how he elevated his sitters women in particular to icons of status and sophistication. The role of women will feature heavily today, and from actresses to duchesses we ll see how they played a leading role in the development of portraiture. We will also look at George Romney and his infatuation with the fabulous Amy Lyon, daughter of a blacksmith, and later to be known as Lady Emma Hamilton.

6 Wednesday 31 October The Ultimate Revolution: The Neo-Classical Movement in France The Oath of the Horatii by David The French Revolution of 1789 was the most dramatic and cataclysmic moment in French history. Wrapped up in the intricate web of this maelstrom of events you find the controlled and classical brushstrokes of Jacques-Louis David, a hugely influential artist and political figure. This was the era of Neo-classicism in France: the kings of the ancien régime were over, and a new classical era began, influenced further by the discoveries of Pompeii and Herculaneum. In this talk we ll look at the fabulous Jacques-Louis David; Angelica Kauffman, the leading female portrait painter of the day; and the Italian sculptor Antonio Canova, who was by Napoleon s reign by far the most celebrated sculptor in Europe. TWO WEEK BREAK

7 Wednesday 21 November Prinny and Britain s Great Collectors Merry-Making in 1812, the Prince Regent by George Cruikshank After the demise of the aristocracy in France art works flooded the UK market. With collecting art entirely in vogue, the auction houses were filled with agents to the rich and famous whether it was the Prince Regent (Prinny), the Marquesses of Hertford or the Rothschilds vying for the latest antiquity or Old Master. We ll look at the palaces that grew up around these collections (including Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle) and see some of the contemporary artists these patrons commissioned, such as Thomas Lawrence, perhaps the greatest portrait painter Britain has ever seen. Thomas Lawrence s rags-to-riches story is echoed by that of his great friend John Soane. At the end of this talk we ll explore what is today called the Sir John Soane Museum to find out more about one of Britain s most elusive and eccentric collectors.

8 Wednesday 28 November Escaping Industry: Fantasies in Victorian London John Everett Millais Ophelia In 1800 there were one million people living in London. By 1881, there were four and a half million inhabitants. The city was changing dramatically. Darwin s evolutionary theory sent shockwaves into every household; the first trains and highways underground (the London tube) were invented; train stations were named great cathedrals of modernism ; colonies were expanding ever outwards; and influences flooded in from abroad. How did the artist respond? Some embraced it, but many sought for a world pre-revolution, pre-industry. In this talk we ll focus on the revolutionary Pre-Raphaelite brotherhood and the paintings of John Everett Millais, William Holman Hunt and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. We ll look at the influence of Frederick Lord Leighton, president of the Royal Academy, social lion and cultural influencer, who hosted artists and patrons in his stunning party house in Holland Park. William Morris will also feature, as will some of the rather strange Victorian artists who took refuge in another kind of fantasy world: darker, more mysterious and not for the feint-hearted.

9 Wednesday 5 December The Sun is God; JMW Turner the Father of Modern Art The Fighting Temeraire by JMW Turner The Industrial Revolution was well underway by the time Constable and Turner were vying for supremacy in London s Royal Academy of Arts. Both having turned to landscape art, they revolutionized the genre as soon as their brushes touched canvas. Endlessly at loggerheads with each other, the works of these artists could not be more different. It is frankly astonishing they were alive at the same time. We ll start by looking at the shimmering detail of Constable s exquisite landscapes and dramatic cloudscapes. But our focus will be the art of the genius JMW Turner. Turner s romantic obsession with speed, storms and most importantly the sun permeates his paintings, and over his long career his brushwork turned increasingly wild and uncontrolled. By the end, is believed that Turner was spitting onto his canvases and calling the sun god. It is no wonder that John Ruskin called Turner the father of modern art. This talk paves the way for our next course, which will be on modernism, starting in early further details

10 Daily Itinerary 10am Meet for arrival coffee, tea and biscuits 1030am First half of talk 11.30am short break 11.45am Second half of talk Approximately 12.30pm Finish Cost & Booking AED per session (250 AED + 5% VAT), or 1,680 AED if you purchase all eight in one payment (200AED per session + 5% VAT). This includes tea, coffee and biscuits supplied by the XVA Café at the beginning of the event. Should you stay for lunch after the talks, the XVA are offering a 10% discount. Please contact XVA Gallery on xva@xvagallery.com or to book. To confirm your booking, advanced payment must be made. There are a restricted number of places, so please book. Getting to the XVA Gallery The XVA Gallery is in the Al Fahidi district of Bur Dubai. It is a charming part of town that has been chosen deliberately to work with the themes of art history and cultural heritage. Please get a taxi to the XVA Gallery, or take the metro to Al Fahidi station. It can be extremely difficult to find parking spaces in the area. Click here to see the XVA Gallery in Google Maps or the map attached below. If you get lost on the day, please call the XVA on