We are all so familiar with the ideas and culture of the Italian Renaissance, a phenomenon that emerged in the 15th century. But why did Florence act as the midwife for this evolution? What did the city provide that enabled this birth and encouraged it to flourish? Is it something that was so efficiently reported […]
Describing herself by writing, “I am a museum”, Peggy Guggenheim’s life took a clear path, from setting up a commercial gallery in London, going on a single-minded shopping trip to Paris in the late 1930’s even as the German tanks were rolling in to the suburbs, to escape (with her selection of European artists) to […]
The Persian empire exploded into life during the middle of the 6th century BC and was the largest empire in the world for the next two centuries. In around 515, its third Great King, Darius I, commissioned the building of a new city, Persepolis, with his palace at its centre. We know a great deal […]
The Persian empire exploded into life during the middle of the 6th century BC and was the largest empire in the world for the next two centuries. In around 515, its third Great King, Darius I, commissioned the building of a new city, Persepolis, with his palace at its centre. We know a great deal […]
Working as a housekeeper was one of the most prestigious jobs a 19th and early 20th century woman could want, and also one of the toughest. A far cry from the Downton Abbey fiction, the real-life housekeeper was up against capricious mistresses, low pay, no job security and gruelling physical labour. Until now, her story […]
The Persian empire exploded into life during the middle of the 6th century BC and was the largest empire in the world for the next two centuries. In around 515, its third Great King, Darius I, commissioned the building of a new city, Persepolis, with his palace at its centre. We know a great deal […]
When social historian Tessa Boase told the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds she wanted to write their early story, they refused to let her visit their archives. To a former investigative journalist, this was a challenge she could not resist. This lecture shines a light on the intriguing story of women’s love affair […]
Working as a housekeeper was one of the most prestigious jobs a 19th and early 20th century woman could want, and also one of the toughest. A far cry from the Downton Abbey fiction, the real-life housekeeper was up against capricious mistresses, low pay, no job security and gruelling physical labour. Until now, her story […]
London’s sumptuous Victorian and Edwardian department stores changed the capital – and changed its women. Shoppers of every rank were lavishly wooed, seduced and often undone by the temptations laid out before them in these new ‘cathedrals of desire’. Starting on Oxford Street’s ‘golden mile’, we’ll set off on a cultural tour of the capital’s […]
When social historian Tessa Boase told the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds she wanted to write their early story, they refused to let her visit their archives. To a former investigative journalist, this was a challenge she could not resist. This lecture shines a light on the intriguing story of women’s love affair […]
The Persian empire exploded into life during the middle of the 6th century BC and was the largest empire in the world for the next two centuries. In around 515, its third Great King, Darius I, commissioned the building of a new city, Persepolis, with his palace at its centre. We know a great deal […]
Working as a housekeeper was one of the most prestigious jobs a 19th and early 20th century woman could want – and also one of the toughest. A far cry from the Downton Abbey fiction, the real-life housekeeper was up against capricious mistresses, low pay, no job security, and gruelling physical labour. Delving into secret […]
When social historian Tessa Boase told the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds she wanted to write their early story, they refused to let her visit their archives. To a former investigative journalist, this was a challenge she could not resist. This lecture shines a light on the intriguing story of women’s love affair […]
When social historian Tessa Boase told the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds she wanted to write their early story, they refused to let her visit their archives. To a former investigative journalist, this was a challenge she could not resist. This lecture shines a light on the intriguing story of women’s love affair […]
London’s sumptuous Victorian and Edwardian department stores changed the capital – and changed its women. Shoppers of every rank were lavishly wooed, seduced and often undone by the temptations laid out before them in these new ‘cathedrals of desire’. Starting on Oxford Street’s ‘golden mile’, we’ll set off on a cultural tour of the capital’s […]
Working as a housekeeper was one of the most prestigious jobs a 19th and early 20th century woman could want, and also one of the toughest. A far cry from the Downton Abbey fiction, the real-life housekeeper was up against capricious mistresses, low pay, no job security and gruelling physical labour. Until now, her story […]
When social historian Tessa Boase told the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds she wanted to write their early story, they refused to let her visit their archives. To a former investigative journalist, this was a challenge she could not resist. This lecture shines a light on the intriguing story of women’s love affair […]
When social historian Tessa Boase told the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds she wanted to write their early story, they refused to let her visit their archives. To a former investigative journalist, this was a challenge she could not resist. This lecture shines a light on the intriguing story of women’s love affair […]
Comical paintings were abundant in the Dutch Golden Age genre paintings depicting people and animals misbehaving, being silly, naughty and laughing out loud. Some of these paintings represented common sayings, while others were created as moral lessons. However, they also coincided with a belief by contemporary doctors of the 17th century that laughing was good […]
“Fabergé” conjures up images of pre-revolutionary Russia, opulent Easter eggs and exquisite pieces found in the most important world collections. This presentation analyses the use of naturalism by Fabergé, focusing on lesser-known experiments in Art Nouveau, as well as animal representations in hardstone carvings and flower studies. It also highlights the naturalistic imagery incorporated into […]
Looking at the collections of four very different women and their approaches to jewellery, how their backgrounds influenced their choices, and the messages jewellery can send in respect of status, wealth and politics. Marjorie Merriweather Post, Evalyn Walsh McLean, Madeleine Albright and Elizabeth Taylor are the subject of this richly illustrated talk. Dates and Locations […]
The 17th century in the Netherlands, referred to as the Dutch Golden Age, was the time of Rembrandt and Vermeer, of extraordinary riches and incredible progress. There may be no other country in which in the brief span of a hundred years so many paintings were executed. It would be hard to find a museum […]