French 17th century chateau design owes much to one man; the ambitious visionary Nicolas Fouquet who is still somewhat of an enigma today. He seemed invincible but made one  grave error of judgement  which was to lead to his downfall. He employed the country’s best talent of the day to commission a spectacular chateau for himself. In doing so he was completely outshining the Sun King; Vaux le Vicomte presented a radical new look for the century whilst Versailles was nothing more than a humble hunting lodge at the time. The story that ensues is legendary.

Charles Dickens was an amateur conjurer for around seven years of his life, from the time he wrote A Christmas Carol to David Copperfield.  His best known show was on the Isle of Wight in 1849 when he produced a highly amusing, and informative, playbill to promote his appearance.  This playbill, in which Dickens called himself the 'Unparalleled Necromancer', provides the focus to talk about how Dickens was inspired to take up magic, which other conjurers influenced him, whether he was any good as a conjurer and how he depicted, and wrote about, magic in his own books, articles and letters.

The Camden Town Group was an innovative circle of painters united by the desire to paint works of a modern character.  This lecture introduces the core members of the group, led by Walter Richard Sickert, and tells the story of their brief but significant association. We will examine the key themes addressed within their work: urban life, popular entertainment and the lower social classes, as well as Sickert’s infamous series of paintings inspired by the notorious Camden Town murder.  

The Bronze Age Frescoes from Santorini: The Art of Atlantis?” indulges in a sumptuously illustrated look at some outstanding ancient Greek artworks, and the intriguing possibilities of interpretation that they have produced. In around 1625 BCE the thriving harbour town of Akrotiri on the island of Santorini was overwhelmed in a cataclysmic volcanic eruption that both destroyed and preserved the one of the most wondrous sets of frescoes to emerge from Antiquity.

Fake News has been around since the time of the Egyptian pharaohs and art has always been one of its favourite media. In this talk I will be uncovering the subtle art of spin and propaganda in art from the glories of Ancient Mesopotamia to the Norman Conquest and then onto Elizabethan England and the dark days of Nazi Germany. Every picture tells a story - whether it is true or not is an entirely different matter.

MacDonald 'Max' Gill, younger brother of the sculptor and typographer Eric Gill, was an architect, graphic designer and letterer, best known for his pictorial maps, especially those for the London Underground. He also created painted maps for Arts & Crafts houses including Lindisfarne Castle, magnificent murals for Cunard liners, and eye-catching publicity posters for organisations such as the Empire Marketing Board. An enduring legacy is his alphabet for the Imperial War Graves Commission used on all British military headstones since the First World War.

Two hundred and fifty years after Antonio Stradivari’s death, his violins and cellos remain the most highly prized instruments in the world. Loved by great musicians and capable of fetching fabulous sums when sold, their tone and beauty are legendary. Every subsequent violin-maker has tried to match them. Not one has succeeded. How can that be? 

Akhenaten (c1352 – c1336 BC) is probably the most controversial of all the Egyptian pharaohs. He made extraordinary changes to the religion and art, all the more striking when we consider how conventional the ancient Egyptians tended to be in these respects. He replaced the traditional polytheistic religion with the worship of one solar deity, and the art is unlike that of any other pharaoh’s reign. His wife was Nefertiti arguably the most famous queen of pharaonic Egypt. Together they continue to fascinate.

From Canaletto to JMWTurner, from Whistler to Monet - the Thames has always fascinated English and foreign artists alike. This river's influence is out of all proportion to its meagre size. In fact, no river no London. The enchanting Frost Fairs, picturesque old London Bridge, punting and the Boat Race, Tower Bridge will all be featured.