We had another wonderful evening at our 1 June lecture. Thank you, members and visitors, for again making the evening social and fun.
Gaby Black, one of our scholarship recipients looking like a Botticelli angel, started the meeting performing three songs. Quite the actor, she sang beautifully with expression and poise.
In his outstanding presentation, Leslie Primo gave us an overview of the representation of the body in art from ancient to modern times. Using high quality slides, he unravelled the riddles of symbols and iconography in paintings and sculpture, a convention understood in the past but lost to most of us now. He was able to highlight some of the recurring themes through the centuries, including social class, power and sexism which, sadly, still resonate today. It seemed more like a friendly intimate chat than a lecture. It was exhilarating. It was too soon over.
Rococo: A masterpiece, a mystery, and Madame De Pompadour
Don’t miss our 27 July lecture, at 7.30pm, at Berry Uniting Church Hall, 71-77 Alfred Street, Berry.
In 18th century France a new style emerged which encompassed furniture, paintings, prints, décor, and fashionable dress. Light and airy decorations climbed up walls, and encircled mirrors, wound up and down chair legs and drove out the heavy symmetry of the Baroque style. Madame de Pompadour was a champion of the Rococo, which coincided with her reign as mistress of Louis XV. When and why did she (and the Rococo style) lose favour? Through the paintings of Hogarth, Boucher, Fragonard and others, we will address this question, through close examination of Pompadour’s elegant image and personal style.
Jacqui Ansell has a MA in History of Dress from the Courtauld Institute. She continues to lecture regularly on the public programs of the National Gallery, Wallace Collection and the National Portrait Gallery and has published on court dress, Grand Tour portraiture and Welsh Costumes. Jacqui is a senior lecturer at Christie’s Education, London where she writes, presents, and tutors online courses on Art History, the Art World, and the History of Jewellery.
For more information on this lecture visit our website:
www.adfas.org.au/societies/shoalhaven/
Maebehe Garcia
Publicity Officer