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China: Art, Power and Revolutions, 1950-1976

The establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949 gave Chinese artists a government that had explicit policies for the arts, seeing them as an essential part of the creation of ‘new China’.

King Henry III and the Communication of Power

This lecture considers how Henry III of England used art to justify monarchy at the dawn of what is commonly termed the ‘parliamentary state’.

Grasping Shadows: The Dark Side in Painting

Starting with literary examples from Dickens, this lecture will untangle the complexity of shadow-meaning by exploring how artists have used shadows since ancient times.

English Landscape: Samuel Palmer and the Pastoral

Samuel Palmer, in his Shoreham period in the 1820s and 30s, seized on the long tradition of classical pastoral landscapes, and wrested it into an English idiom.

English Landscape: Constable and Clare

Constable's Stour landscapes of the Regency period, during and just after the War with France, and his publication English Landscape Scenery, champion local and low-key rural England.

How To Spot A Roman Emperor

Mary Beard, Professor of Classics at the Univeristy of Cambridge, Fellow of Newnham College, and Royal Academy of Arts Professor of Ancient Literature - who is also well-known for her media appearances - will speak on the fascinating topic of images of Roman Emperors.