Travel the intricate network of our canals, admiring the egineering and architectural artistry of their creators!

This lecture provides a colourful introduction to the secret world of our 2000-mile inland waterway network and looks at all aspects of their exceptional artistic, architectural and engineering vernacular.  This lecture will also look at Scottish waterways and canals including the Crinan, Caledonian and Forth and Clyde Canals.

Our Lecturer:  ROGER BUTLER

Roger Butler is a landscape architect and an experienced writer, photographer and lecturer. He has a particular interest in the unique history, architecture and traditions of our canal network and worked on some of the UK’s major canal restoration projects. He has also acted as a consultant to bodies such as Waterways Ireland, Natural England and the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. He regularly contributes to waterway and heritage magazines and writes and provides images for a range of countryside and outdoor titles.

Roger is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, a Licentiate of the Royal Photographic Society and a Chartered Member of the Landscape Institute. He lives near Stratford upon Avon and lectures across the country to groups such as the National Trust, RSPB, U3A, history societies, etc. His lectures inform, entertain and introduce the extraordinary world of our canals - only the National Trust and the Church of England have more listed buildings than our waterways.

Learn how Lowry is not the only artist capturing the urban and natural landscapes of North Britain!

L.S. Lowry's works are perhaps the most immediately familiar of any 'provincial' British painter, but his enduring popularity has perhaps cast a shadow over those contemporaries active in Northern Britain during the first half of the 20th Century. This lecture, which can also be offered as a study day, considers those other artists and painters who sought to embrace the new visual language of modernism, but whose approach recognised and embraced the urban and natural landscapes of Northern Britain.

Our Lecturer:  ED WILLIAMS

Ed Williams is based in the North West of England, as an Oxford educated Art Historian, who was tutored by Dr Janina Ramirez and Mary Acton, he is passionate about sharing his love of the History of Art to a range of audiences. He works at TATE Liverpool, delivering tours and talks of the collection and special exhibitions and is also an official Green Badge Tour Guide for North Wales.  In addition to leading tours, Ed teaches the History of Art at the University of Liverpool, where he specialises in teaching adult learners at the Department of Continuing Education. He regularly gives lectures to specialist interest groups and societies as well as U3A and WI groups. 

He is a member of the International Association of Art Critics and his work has been published in several journals and online publications.

Discover Tibet as home to a rich artistic tradition inspired by the teachings of Buddhism!

This lecture explores the wealth of this sacred artistic tradition - and explains how the paintings and sculptures are created, and the diverse ways in which they are used.

Our Lecturer: ZARA FLEMING

Freelance lecturer, art consultant and exhibition curator specialising in the art and culture ofTibet, the Himalayan areas and Mongolia. Initially based at the V&A, but also worked with the Central Asian Department of Bonn University, the Orient Foundation, the Royal Academy, Tibet House, the National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside and Asia House. In addition to lecturing for The Arts Society, she lectures for museums, universities, Asian art societies, and private associations. Guest lecturer and tour guide on numerous trips to the Himalayas. Edited Masterpieces of Mongolian Art: Vol 1 and has published many articles in the field of Buddhist art and culture.

Discover how the Lute holds a Special Place in the History of Art!

Painters of the Italian Renaissance depicted golden-haired angels plucking its delicate strings, evoking celestial harmony; in the sixteenth century, during the rise of humanism, the lute was a becoming pastime of educated courtiers, as depicted by the likes of Holbein and Titian; throughout the seventeenth century, the instrument continued to play a key role in emphasising the intimate, debauched and transient pleasures of interior scenes by Jan Steen and portraits by Frans Hals. This lecture looks at the lute, and other musical instruments, as devices to express various aspects of the human character throughout the ages.

Our Lecturer:  ADAM BUSIAKIEWICZ

Adam Busiakiewicz is an Art Historian, Lecturer and Lutenist. After completing his Bachelor’s Degree in History at University College London in 2010 he held the position of Head of Historical Interpretation (curator) at Warwick Castle. He left the castle in 2013 after winning a full AHRC studentship to pursue a Master’s Degree in Fine and Decorative Art at the Sotheby’s Institute of Art, London. He completed his doctorate in the History of Art at the University of Warwick in 2022 and became a cataloguer in the Old Master Paintings Department at Sotheby's where he remains a Consultant.

Adam has been a Lecturer / Educator at the National Gallery and Guide Lecturer at the Wallace Collection, where he has organised several events and courses on Music & Art as well as other subjects. He has also given talks and performances at the Royal Collection, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Sotheby’s Institute of Art. 

Alongside his publications and scholarly articles, Adam is the co-editor of arthistorynews.com,one of the internet’s most popular art history blogs. 

Explore Extraordinary Architecture from the Radical to the Ridiculed!

Amazing architecture is a lecture which introduces the audience to some of the most extraordinary architectural constructions ever created, both historically and in the modern era. This lecture includes moments when technological advances allowed sudden leaps forward in what was physically possible as well as examples of architects making a dramatic change from the prevailing style. It also examines examples of novelty architecture where buildings are deliberately constructed to resemble other objects. This lecture provides an enjoyable introduction to architecture as a subject and presents a number of styles and building types to the audience.

Our Lecturer:  DR SARAH PEARSON

Holds a First Class BA in Art History from Reading University, an MA in World Art Studies from the University of East Anglia and a PhD in Architectural History, also from Reading. Lectured for 10 years at Reading and at the University of East Anglia, and now works as a freelance lecturer and teaches at the University of Cambridge (Madingley Hall) in person and for online courses. Has published articles and a book chapter on the architect Francesco di Giorgio and maintains active research interests in the subject of architecture and ideology. 

Feel the Heat through Lavery's paintings in North Africa!

This lecture discusses the lure of North Africa for three 19th century Scottish artists, Arthur Melville, Joseph Crawhall and John Lavery.  While Crawhall and Melville reflected the smell, sounds and brilliant light of the Moroccan people and animals, Lavery evoked the dazzling white buildings and blue seas of Tangier.

Our Lecturer: PROF FRANCES FOWLE

Senior Curator at the National Galleries of Scotland and Chair of Nineteenth Century Art at TheUniversity of Edinburgh. She is the author of Van Gogh’s Twin: The Scottish Art Dealer Alexander Bell and has curated numerous international exhibitions including Van Gogh in Britain:Pioneer Collectors in 2006. She was the 2002 Van Gogh Museum Visiting Fellow and is on the advisory board of the Van Gogh Worldwide Project, a digital platform for all works by Van Gogh.

Discover how Bruegel's paintings changed the way we see the world, through art!

In 1565, Pieter Bruegel the Elder was commissioned to create a series of paintings for a dining room in Antwerp.  The images, charting the course of a year, changed the way we view the world through art.  Looking at paintings such as The Return of the Herd, Hunters in the Snow and The Gloomy Day, this lecture explores how Bruegel pioneered a whole new way of thinking.

Our Lecturer: GAVIN PLUMLEY

A writer and broadcaster. Appears on BBC Radio 3 and 4, and contributes to newspapers, magazines and opera and concert programmes worldwide. Lectures widely about the culture of Central Europe. Recent appearances include Klimt and The Kiss in cinemas worldwide, and talks for the Hay and Cheltenham Literature Festivals, the Royal Opera House, the National Gallery, the National Trust, the National Theatre, the British Museum and the V&A. His first book, A Home for All Seasons, is out now.

The great Venetian artist, Canaletto, spent ten years living in London producing wonderful landscapes of the city.  In this lecture, we explore his time in the Capital and look at how his style changed.

Our Lecturer:  NICK SALMOND

Nick is a London Blue Badge Guide and a lecturer in History and the Arts. He qualified as a London Blue Badge Guide in 2019, winning the award as Guide of the Year. In 2021 he gave the annual Katrine Prince Lecture to members of the Institute of Tourist Guiding. Before guiding he joined the BBC where he worked for over 30 years in both television and radio. He helped cover some of the great events of History, from the fall of the Berlin Wall to the terrible events of 9/11, from the fall of the Thatcher Government to the celebrations of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

Awards, Qualifications & Memberships:

Member of the Institute of Tourist Guiding.

Qualified as a London Blue Badge Guide 2019

Winner of the Katrine Prince Prize as Guide of the Year

In the 1880s, the fishing village of Newlyn in Cornwall became a mecca for rural realist painters, who documented the lives of the local community in their beautiful and moving paintings.  This lecture outlines the key characteristics of this art movement, introducing the 'father of the Newlyn School', Stanhope Forbes and his talented wife Elizabeth (nee Armstrong), amongst fellow artists, including Frank Bramley, Walter Langley, Albert Chevallier Tayler and Henry Scott Tuke.

Our Lecturer:

ALISON BEVAN

Since graduating in History of Art from Nottingham University in 1986, Alison Bevan (née Lloyd) has spent her entire career working in public art galleries. Starting out at the Graham Sutherland Gallery in her home county of Pembrokeshire, she then spent ten years organising and curating

exhibitions at the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery in Swansea, where she honed her broadcast media skills, including presenting a weekly Arts News feature on BBC Radio Wales, 1995-6.

In 1999, Alison took up the role of Director of Penlee House Gallery & Museum, Penzance. Here she became an acknowledged expert on the Newlyn, Lamorna and St Ives artists colonies (1880-1940), a subject on which has lectured in the UK, USA and France. She raised the profile of this area of art through initiating national and international touring exhibitions, and contributing to numerous publications and television programmes, and in 2013 was awarded the British Empire Medal for services to Cultural Heritage in Cornwall.

From 2013-2024, Alison was Director of the RWA (Royal West of England Academy) – Britain’s only regional Royal Academy of Art: an extraordinary historic institution whose Academicians have included leading figures of the Newlyn School and Bloomsbury Group, and today include Sir Peter Blake, Sir Frank Bowling and Eileen Cooper.

Now based in Chepstow and working as a freelance lecturer, curator and consultant, she is also Chair of Bristol Museums’ Oversight Board; a Fellow of the Museums Association, and an Honorary Research Fellow of the University of Bristol.

Awards, Qualifications & Memberships:    BEM BA FMA

Containing ground-breaking research, this lecture explores the astounding carving/sculpture of a bookcase filled with books. The carving is part of a suite of wooden sculptures in the Scuola Grande di San Rocco in Venice, others of which also have books depicted. Understanding the subject matter reveals the brilliance of the carver, Francesco Pianta, his ability to observe and carve what was in front of him in minute detail. One C17 writer stated “it is a bookcase, so beautifully carved that many wish to touch it to see whether the books are real or fake,” which could be why so many people walk past it oblivious of its importance.

Our Lecturer:

CAROLINE BENDIX

Caroline Bendix is a library conservator, accredited through the Institute of Conservation, who has worked on over 500 collections in the UK and abroad, including St Catherine’s Monastery, Sinai, advising on all aspects of books’ care in situ. She has written three of the British Library’s guides on preservation and in 2019 was awarded the Plowden Medal for her “outstanding work in developing in-situ library conservation”. Since 1992 she has been the National Trust’s Adviser on Libraries Conservation, the adviser and trainer for The Arts Society’s Heritage Volunteers projects and is on the Archbishop of Canterbury’s advisory panel for Lambeth Palace Library.

This lecture  explores the way in which the East India Company developed trade between East and West.  It focuses on the textile trade with India and China, examining chintz and Chinese painted silks, Chinese export porcelain, furniture and other goods.  It concludes with Chinoiserie.

Vivienne Lawers is an art historian, curator, author and journalist with over 25 years' experience in the art market.  She teaches at several Higher Education institutions including the University of the Arts, London, Sotheby's Institute of Art, the City & Guilds of London Art Schook, SOAS (Unversity of London) and Imperial College.  In January 2021 Vivienne received the Geoffrey Bond Bursary for Art, an annual prize awarded by the Worshipful Company of Educators to an "outstandiing educator" nominated by their instiution.  Her articles, essays and reports have been published in numberous specialist journats, newspapers, catalogues, handbooks and websites, aimed at both the academic and general readership.  The title of her current book project is "The Bronze Horse:  Themes in Equine Sculpture fron Antiquity to the Present Day".  In Spring 2021 she embarked on a critique and bioigraphy of the comtemporary Filipino artist, Andres Barrioquinto.  Since 2011 she has been Seniour UK Consultant to Singapore Gallery One East Asia and have co-curated many exhibitions of Southeast Asian modern and contemporary art in London and Singapore.  Vivienne is also Head of Education for the london Asian and African Contemporary ARt Fair (founded 2020).  When time allows, she also lectures on cruise lines.

Image from Exhibition at St Louis Art Museum - Global Threads. the Art and Fashion of Indian Chintz.

George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, was the favourite of King James VI and I and subsequently Chief Minister to King Charles I.  Buckingham was a beauty and surrounded himself with beautiful things.  In this lecture we will learn about Buckingham's patronage of the arts, his life and how he enjoyed exquisite clothes.

Lucy Hughes-Hallett's book on the 17th century Duke of Buckingham "The Scapegoat" will be published by Fourth Estate in October 2024.  Her las non-fiction book "The Pike:  Gabrielle d'Annunzio was described in The Sunday Times as "the biography of the decade".  It won all three of the UK's most prestigious prizes for non-fiction:  The Samuel Johnson Prize, the Duff Cooper Prize and the Costa Biography Award.  Her other non-fiction books include "Cleopatra and Heroes".  Lucy also writes fiction.  Her novel "Peculiar Ground" is largely set in the 17th century and is narrated by a landscape designer loosely based on the diarist John Evelyn.  It was described as "almost Tolstoyan in its sly wite and descriptive brilliance" (The Guardan) and "full of drama, vivid characters, wit gorgeous writing and fascinating detail (New York Times).    In her short story collection "Fabulous" she retells fables from classical mythology, relocating them to modern Britain.

A Fellow fo the Royal Society of Literature and of the Historical Association, she has written on books, theatre and the visual arts for many publications including The Sunday Times, The Guardian, The Observer, The New Statesman and the TLS.  Lucy was Chair of the Judges for the 2021 International Booker Prize.

As an equerry to the late Queen Mother, Jeremy couldn't help but notice her personal collection of gems, which inspired him to study Gemmology.  This lecture looks at a selection of items of gemmological and historical interest.

On leaving Durham University with a degree in geology, Jeremy  decided to join the Army.  He then spent five years in the Irish Guards, the last two and a half of which were on secondment to Clarence House as the Queen Mother's equerry.  Being a geologist, he could not help but notice the magnificent gemstones in the Queen Mother's jewellery.  If he admired a piece she would sometimes take it off and hand it to him for a closer look.  This inspired Jeremey to study gemmology and on leaving the Army, he qualified as a Fellow of the Gemmological Association.  Then, in addition to working as an exploration geologist in south Africa and a gold miner in California, he spent several years as a jewellery and precious stone dealer in London's Hatton Garden.  When the Queen Mother died in 2002, he helped open the Castle of Mey to the public and what was supposed to be a six-week appointment turned into six years.  As a result he spent more time at the Castle of Mey than its royal owner ever did, and developed it as one of north Scotland's most popular tourist attractions.

Day of Special Interest with Caroline Holmes.  Details to be confirmed.

This lecture is an archeological tale that encompasses a consummate knowledge of Ancient Egypt in finding the tomb and treasures of Tutankhamun in 1922.  Born during the reign of Akhenaten as pharoah Tutankhamun returned to the old order of multiple gods represented in the paintings and jewels found within the tomb.

Caroline Holmes has lectured widely in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Europe and Japan and on cruises to the Baltic, Caribbean, Mediterranean and Red Seas, and the Atlantic and  Indian Oceans.  In 2017 she returned to The Arts Society in New Zealand.  At the University of Cambridge she was ICE Academic Tutor and Course Director.  Caroline lectures for the Royal Horticultural Society and various museums, and onine for The Gardens Trust and organisations worldwide.  The author of 12 books including "Water Lilies and Bory Latour-Marliac, the Genius Behind Monet's Water Lilies", "Impressionists in their Gardens", "Follies of Europe:  Architectural Extravaganzas", "Monet at Giverny" and "Icons of Garden Design".  Caroline is also a consultant designer specialising in evoking historic, artistic and symbolic references.  She has made contributions to Viking TV which include Monet's Garden at Giverny.  Caroline is also a presenter and contributor to television and the BBC Radio 4.  In 2017 she was the recipient of the Herb Society of America's "Elizabeth Crisp Rea Award".

Andy Warhol is remembered as the king of Pop Art, who embraced celebrity and became an American icon.  Yet there is a less well known side to him:  the shy son of immigrants whose prolific, experimental and inclusive artistic practice enabled a counterculture in transforming art.

Bill Powell's working career was in finance, firstly as an accountant with BT.  He joined St Michael's Financial Services (now M & S Money) shortly after they were established in the mid 1980s as Head of Customer Service.  He then became the UK Chairman of the Consumer Credit Trade Association.  When he took early retirement, he embarked on a completely different career as a tour manager, escorting groups of people to various destinations around the world.  During this time he was able to indulge his love of Modern Art, visting galleries across the globe.  He started lecturing on cruise ships in 2013, talking about Modern Art and his other great passion, Rock and Roll music.

Scotland's finest poet and song writer died twice.  At the age of thirty-seven he died of heart disease.  His memory was then assassinated by unsigned obituaries in the Edinburgh Press.  This lecture will examine the causes of both deaths.  Despite this the Nation's debt to him is beyond calculation. This first lecture of 2025 will take place on Tuesday 14th January at 2pm in the Corn Exchange, Cupar.   Professor David Purdie, is a former chair of the Edinburgh Burns Club and the Sir Walter Scott Club. He is the Co-editor of the Burns Encyclopedia of the life and works of Robert Burns. He is an author, lecturer, a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, a political adviser and a highly regarded after-dinner speaker on many subjects.

We might assume our modern Christmas owes much to the Victorians.  In fact, carol singing, present giving, mulled wine and mince pies were all popular in the 16th century.  It was a twelve-day-long festival, so beloved by people that its traditions survived remarkably unchanged in an age of religious upheaval.

Siobhan Clarke has worked for Historic Royal Palaces for 20 years delivering tours and lectures on Hampton Court, Kensington Palace, the Tower of London and the Banqueting House, Whitehall Palace.  Her experience includes education sessions and tours for schools and universities as well as for corporate and private clients.  She has lectured for the British Museum, National Trust, National Archives and the Smithsonian.  She has also featured on BBC Radio's "Woman's Hour" and BBC television's documentary  "Secrets of Henry VIII's Palace".  Her published work includes "A Tudor Christmas" in collaboration with Alison Weir (2018), "The Tudors:  The Crown, The Dynasty, The Golden Age" with Linda Collins (2019), "King and Collector:  Henry VIII and the Art of Kingship" (2021) and "Gloriana:  Elizabeth I and the Art of Queenship" (2022).

This lecture is a personal account of the behind the scenes preparation to the National Day of Remembrance at the Cenotaph, Whitehall, organised on behalf of the Royal British Legion and the Nation.  Timing and precision are everything:  find out how the music is prepared ahead of the big day in this fascinating lecture.

Lt Col Dr Graham Jones started his professional life as a musician in the British Army and over a glittering career spanning nearly forty years he retired as the Senior Director of Music, Household Division and Director of Music, Coldstream Guards, a position unequalled throughout military music in Great Britain.  During his illustrious career he has recorded over 40 albums and been responsible for the largest commissioning programme of wind band music in recent history.  He pioneered a music education programme with the University of Salford for military musicians resulting in a new Master of Music in performance degree.  Graham was made a Member of the British Emprie by Her Majesty the Queen at Buckingham Place for ourstanding service to military music in 1993.  Having retired at the start of 2012 from military service, Graham is enjoying a second career as a guest condutor, adjuciator, guest speaker, lecturer, clinician, recording consultant and educator.  He is also the Artist Director of London International Band Week, music consultant to Henley Music Festival, resident conductor of the British Imperial Orchestra, visiting conductor in residence at Troy University, Alabama, USA and guest lecturer on cruise ships.  Graham's charitable work includes event planning in support of the Royal British Legion and sitting on the London fundraising committee of the Army Benevolent Fund - the Soldiers' Charity.

2025 is the 400th Anniversary of Charles I's Accession to the throne.  His obsession for collecting works of art began when he travelled to Spain.  On becoming king in 1625 Charles purchased a fabulous collection which included works by Titian, Raphael and Andrea Mantegna.

Barbara Askew has been a historian and London Blue Badge Guide since 1988.  She is a Lecturer, Examiner and Course Director on Blue Badge Guide Training Courses and an acknowledged expert on royalty and Windsor Castle.  She is the only Blue Badge Guide accredited to guide the Albert Memorial.  Barbara offers guided visits and walking tours linked to her lectures.

Religious art of the Eastern Church has become beloved as objects of veneration by people of faith as well as fine works of art.  These images are packed with meaning in the colours and symbols.  This lecture will help us to understand their meaning and remarkable sophistication.

Chris hails from Fife, with his family roots in Pittenweem, so is delighted to be making a return visit to Fife.

Although he retired from full time ministry as an Anglican priest in 2021, he continues in ministry and is the Associate Chaplain at the Royal Hospital in Chelsea, ministering among the Chelsea Pensioners, as well as assisting in local parish churches (when he is in the country!)

Chris enjoys life as a lecturer for the Arts Society.  He is also a volunteer guide at London's Tate Britain, and he recently became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA).

He has travelled widely, and worked for British Embassies in North Africa and Eastern Europe.  He has been a cruise ship speaker on river and ocean cruises for over fifteen years, and lectures in the Mediterranean, Baltic, and Black Sea regions, and is soon to be extending his horizons with lectures in the Caribbean and the Indian Ocean in the next few months.

Chris is an enthusiastic and passionate speaker and his talks have been described as informative and entertaining in equal measure!

Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) is best known as a sculptor and architect.  (He designed the marble colonnade in front of the Vatican.)  This lecture will focus on his sculptures which are some of the greatest works in marble and bronze in the history of European art.

Brendan Cassidy gained his MA from Edinburgh University and his PhD from Cambridge.  He has taught art history at Cambridge, London, Princeton and St Andrews, and lectures to academic and other audiencies in the UK, the rest of Europe and the USA.  His publications include:  Politics, Civic Ideals and Sculpture in Italy c. 1240-1400 (2007), Studies in the Illustration of the Psalter (ed. with Rosemary Muir Wrigth, 2000) and Iconography at the Crossroads (ed. 1992).  He has also published numerous articles in British, American, Italian and German art journals.

From Mary Queen of Scots to the modern day, this lecture looks at the jewels of a nation and those in public and private collections, and in potraits.  It will provide an insight into the proud history of goldsmithing and and the story of jewellery in Scotland, including The Scottish Regalia.

Clare Blatherwick is an independent jewellery consultant based in Scotland.  She has over twenty years of experience in the jewellery business, ten of which were spent as Head of Jewellery for Bonhams in Scotland, a role which saw her travel internationally searching for wonderful jewels to be auctioned around the globe.  She has a keen interest in the historical aspect of jewellery and has lectured extensively on her subject.  She has also appeared on various television programmes in the UK and the US as a jewellery expert.  Clare is also a member of The Society of Jewellery Historians.

The Jacobite court in Italy was both dramatic and tragic.  The lecture will follow the dying hopes of the Jacobite cause, looking at the Jacobite relationship with the Papacy, the intrigues and spies, interactions with Italians, and the relationships with the numerous Grand Tourists visiting from Britain.

Patricia Andrew is curaor of museums and galleries in Eastbourne, Chelmsford and Durham, and Deputy Director of the Scottish Museums Council.  Patricia is  a heritage consultant, and also a lecturer to a wide range of organisations including the National Galeries of Scotland and their Friends, and on cruises.  Her publications include articles in the Apollo Magazine, The Burlington Magazine, Country Life and The Walpole Society's Annual Volume.  Her book "A Chasm in Time:  Scottish War Art and Artists of the Twentieth Century" (2014) won the Saltire prize for Scottish History Book of the Year in 2015.

The 18th century was  a Golden Age.  This lecture will trace the architectural development of the country house from the Baroque to the Palladian and will look at the paintings and sculptures.  We will see how country houses were planned and furnished.

Barbara Peacok is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.  She has 35 years' lecturing experiens and is a freelance lecturer throughout the UK and abroad for many organisations including the Arts Society and the National Trust.  She also organises art and architectural tours in the UK and abroad.

Previously a lecturer for Birmingham University Department of Extra-Mural Studies and tutor in Fine Art Department of Continuing Education at Southampton University.  She has worked as Assistant Keeper of Fine Art at the Birmingham City Art Gallery.  Much involved in the preservation of the architectural heritage of Czch land, she has been awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Czech government and the Points of Light Award from Theresa May when she was the UK Prime Minister.

Churchill's life was captured in photographs and he was a prolific writer and speechmaker.  He was a successful and enthusiastic artist, producing some 500 paintings.  The aim of this lecture is to capture the richness and diversity of this great man's life and character.

Mark Cottle was born on the Isles of Scilly and educated at Truro School, Cornwall and Birmingham University.  His career has been spent in education and training both at home and abroad.  He has lectured at Exeter College on medieval and Tudor History, St Mark's and St John's University College, Plymouth and at Bath University on Anglo Saxon and medieval England.  Mark currently runs two small companies providing training and study breaks.

Most people can name a painter, sculptor or furniture maker but few can name a bookbinder and yet bindings may have the same level of craftsmanship as any painting, ceramic or textile.  This lecture provides an overview of Western bookbinding, stucture, the materials used and their manufacture.

Caroline Bendix is a library conservator, accredited through the Institute of Conservations.  She has worked on over 500 collections in the UK and abroad, including St Catherine's Monastery, Sinai, advising on all aspects of books' care in situ.  She has written three of the British Library's guides on preservation.  In 2019 she was awarded the Plowden Medal for her "outstanding work in developing in situ library conservation.  Since 1992 she has been the National Trust's Adviser on Libraries Conservation, the adviser and trainer for The Arts Society's Heritage Volunteers' projects and is on the Archbishop of Canterbury's advisory panel for the Lambeth Palace library.

Simon Williams played Captain James Bellamy in "Upstairs Downstairs".  His most recent part is Justin Elliott in "The Archers".  So in 50 years he has gone from playing one cad to another!  Simon will be talking about his experiences of his highly acclaimed acting career and will be revealing some secrets.

He is a columnist and writer.  His other acting work includes:

Theatre:  Chariots of Fire (Hampstead/West End), Yes, Prime Minister (West End/UK tour), Posting Letters to the Moon (The Minerva and New York).

Television:  Upstairs Downstairs, Sherlock Holmes, Dr Who, Spooks, Merlin and Poldark.

Film:  Goodbye Christopher Robin, Silent Hours, The Fiendish Plot of Dr Fu Manchu, The Prisoner of Zenda

In this lecture we meet the master masons who both designed the buildings and ran the sites.  They did everything from sourcing the vast quantities of wood and stone to recruiting the workforce.  The cathedrals we see today are their legacy,

Imogen Corrigan spent nearly twenty years in the British Army before going to the University of Kent to study Anglo-Saxon and Medieval History and Art where she graduated with a first class honours, followed by an MPhil from the University of Birgmingham.  Imogen works as a freelance lecturer across the UK and the rest of Europe, as well as lecturing on small cruise ships and running study tours and courses.  A published author, she has written "Stone on Stone:  The Men who built the Cathedrals" (published 2019).  Imogen is a Member of the Company of Communicators and a Freeman of the City of London.

Czech emigrees Zika and Lida Ascher left Prague in 1939.  Their modernist aesthetic took London fashion by storm, commissioning leading modern artists from Moore to Topolski, from Derain to Matisse.  An amazing story of courage, tenacity and success.

Ashely Gray is a leading specialist and curator in the key art disciline of modern textiles and their history.  He is a regular vetter at international fine art fairs and served on the Fair Committees of BADA, The Works on Paper Fair and on the BADA Council.  He is regularly invited to lecture on the subject both in the UK and the US where he sits on the advisory board of The Frances Neady Collection at FIT, New York.  As a curator and archivist, he works with many institutions and foundations on conservation and exhibition projects.

This lecture explores Scotland's early taste for the work of Vincent van Gogh, thanks to the artist's friendship with the Glasgow  dealer Alexander Reid.  The lecture will also reveal the circumstances surrounding the recently discovered Van Gogh self-portrait a the the National Galleries of Scotland. 

Professor Frances Fowle is Senior Curator at the National Galleries of Scotland and Chair of Ninteteenth Century Art at The University of Edinburgh.  She is the author of Van Gogh's Twin:  The Scottish Art Dealer Alexander Reid and has curated numerous international exhibitions, including Van Gogh and Britain:  Pioneer Collectors in 2006.  She was the 2002 Van Gogh Museum Visiting Fellow and is on the advisory board of the Van Gogh Worlwide project, a digital platform for all works by Vincent van Gogh.

Siobhan Wyatt invites us to look at the amazing buildings and gardens created by many world famous architects for Maggie's very special centres.

Siobhan Wyatt joined Maggie's in 2018 and is now head of property.  Prior to being involved with construction, she had a background in art history, fine art and interiors.  Before Siobhan joined Maggie's she worked for a leading construction company on a wide range of bulding projects, and then began focussing on the cultural and heritage sector. She has worked as a consultant for the Tate Gallery, Westminster Abbey and various museum charities and trusts.

Ealing Studios reached its zenith in 1949, releasing "Whisky Galore" and "Kind Hearts and Coronets".  Ealing films have a reputation for cosiness and whimsey but they take on a far more serious set of meanings than that reputation suggests.

Benedict Morrison is a lecturer in Literature and Film at the University of Exeter.  He has recently published a book entitled "Complicating Articulation in Art Cinema" with Oxford University Press and is now producing works on post-war British comedy films, the response by the arts and humanities to Covid-19, and cultural narratives of extinction.  He spent seven years studying at the University of Oxford, but finally traded the dreaming spires for the cultural bustle of London, where he lives with his partner.  He loves nothing more than settling down in the darkness of a cinema to enjoy a great film.

A consummate botanist, Cedric Morris bred 90 new irises, but his status as an artist has grown with the years.  As a painter, he is best known for his paintings of flowers and landscapes, as well as his portraits.

Caroline Holmes has lectured widely in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Europe, Japan and on cruises to the Baltic, Mediterranean, Red Sea, Caribbean and the Indian Ocean.  In 2017 Caroline returned to The Arts Society in New Zealand.  At the University of Cambridge she was ICE Academic Tutor and Course Direcor.  She lectures for the Royal Horticultural Society, museums, specialist travel companies and online for The Gardens Trust.  She is a consultant designer specialising in evoking historic, artistic and symbolic referents.  The author of 12 books including "Water Lilites and Bory Latour-Marliac, the Genius Behind Money's Water Lilies", "Impressionists in their Gardens", "Follies of Europe:  Architectural Extravanganzas", "Monet at Giverny" and "Icons of Garden Design".  she has made contributions fo Viking TV which include Monet's Garden at Giverny.  She is also a presenter and contributoir to television and BBC Radio 4.  In 2017 she was the receipient of the Herb Society of America's "Elizabeth Crisp Rea Award".

A boisterous decade marked by a period of enormous vitality in art and design - we will consider Cubism, Vorticism, John Lavery, Nevinson, Cecil Beaton, Noel Coward and all that Jazz!

Joanna Banham is a freelance curator, lecturer and writer.  Fron 2006-2016 she was Head of Adult Learning at the Vicotria & Albert Museum, and before that she was Head of Learning and Access at the National Portrait Gallery, and Head of Public Programmes at Tait Britain.  Joanna has also been Curator of Leighton House and Assistant Keeper at the Whitworth Art Gallery.  She has published on many aspects of Victorian and early 20th century decoration and interiors.  She is currently curating an exhibition on William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement for the Juan March Fundacion in Madrid and the Meuseum Nacional d'Art Catalunya in Barcelona.  Joanna is also Director of the Victorian Society Summer School.

The ever popular Sophie Oosterwijk will introduce us to the building, its recent 10 year renovation and its extensive collections.  We will see works by Hals, Rembrandt (including his famous Nightwatch), Vermeer and Van Gogh.  We will also see some of its medieval art collection, its jewellery, musical instruments and Asian art.

Sophie Oosterwijk was bord in Gouda (Netherlands).  She has an MA and PhD in English Literature (Leiden), an MA in Medieval Studies (York) and a PhD in Art History (Leicester).  Sophie has taught at the universities of St Andrews, Leicester and Manchester, at Sotheby's Institute of Art, the National Turs, V & A, U3A, WEA and other organisations, and has organised many study days, tours and visits.  She is also a regular lecturer for Cambridge University and travel companies, and is the Vice President of the Church Monuments Society.  She has been widely published.

As an architect and interior designer, Robert Adam was neither a furniture designer nor furniture maker, but we will see how his style was interpreted and adapted by celebrated cabinet makers to charmingly harmonise with his interiors.

Janusz Karczewski-Slowikowski is an Accredited Arts Society Lecturer.  He is also a freelance lecturer and researcher in English furniture history, as well as being an antique dealer.

The Nativity, with the Adoration of the Magi and the Shephers, is one of the most popular subjects in Christian art.  Starting with the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, this lecture will explore the surprising idiosyncracies of this much contested site, including a rift between the Catholics and the Greek Orthodox clergy over the marker of the actual birth spot of Christ that might have been the cause of the Crimea War.  This will be followed by an examination of a number of key paintings from the medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods in order to see how the Nativity imagery has developed and changed over the centuries.  Early depictions favoured the portrayal of a "real birth", whilst later imagery represented a totally "miraculous" birth.

Dr Helen Rufus-Ward is an art historian with a BA (1st), Masters with disctinction, and doctorate (DPhil) from the University of Sussex.  She has published on Late Antique and Byzantine ivory carvings, plaster casting of art works and 19th century collecting.  As well as holding a Higher Education Academy teaching qualification, Helen is a member of the Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies, the Society of Jewellery Historians, and is the Chairman of Eastbourne Arts Circle that has raised significant sums of money for the Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne.

This lecture was originally conceived to coincide with the 2017 Tate Britain Retrospective celebrating Hickney's 80th birthday.  It will examine the artist's journey from Bradford to 1960's London, to California and back to Bridlington and his ambitious paintings of the Yorkshire Wolds for the 2012 Royal Academy exhibition.  John will also look at the artist's later work and consider generally how, like his hero Picasso, his career has been marked by a restless seeking of challenge and experimentation.

John Iddon is an accredited Arts Society Lecturer whose freelance work has led him to present lectures for numerous arts societies, the National Trust and even lectures on cruise ships.  John has also been a guide and lecturer at both Tate Britain and Tate Modern, and ran an MA course in Heritage Interpretation at St Mary's University College, Belfast.  In 2012 John wrote a new guidebook for the newly opened Strawberry Hill.

Explore Ukraine's sacred art and architecture and its links with Byzantium and its multi ethnic history.  We are invited to look at Ukraine's rich cultural traditions, art, textiles, song, dance and borscht.

The Huguenots came to Britain in the late 17th century, bringing weavers, silversmiths, clockmakers, opticians, bankers, builders and horticulturalists.  This talk examines their lasting legacy.

Returning by popular demand, this time Simon will tell us all about the wonderful collection of treasures within Chatsworth House.

"I first started giving lectures to live audiences in my late 20s. I had been working at Chatsworth for a few years and as part of my responsibilities for education and what they called ‘promotion’, I started to give talks about the place to teachers (on top of my hundreds of school tours for primary kids), and then local audiences and on to groups and societies further afield. Right from the start, I loved giving these talks. I got to stand up and share my passion for a place I loved, tell stories to entertain and educate, and enthuse others to (re)consider a place that I thought everyone could enjoy. To this day, when a member of an audience comes and tells me that a lecture has inspired them to visit Chatsworth, or I hear that a group have visited as a result of hearing me talk, and fallen under its spell, I get a buzz."

Accompanying himself on the piano, Peter will entertain us with all things Gilbert and Sullivan.

Peter appears in the UK and abroad as a musician and scholar, giving recitals and delivering illustrated lectures on music and the arts. He studied singing and early keyboard instruments at the Royal College of Music and at the Mozarteum in Salzburg.

Paul is a regular expert featured in the Antiques Road Show and his particular area of interest is Ceramics.Paul was formerly a historical adviser to Royal Doulton and editor of The Connoisseur.

His books include Moorcroft Pottery, Dictionary of Minton, Poole Pottery, Cornish Ware, The North of France, The Thames, Country Railways, Branch Line Britain, and Exploring Britain’s Canals. He was the Curator of the Pugin Exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, in 1994 and the same Museum’s Victorian Vision Exhibition in 2001.

The rather audacious title refers to the extraordinary innovation Wilkie brought to the depiction of facial and body language. He is our local hero , born just outside Cupar.

Tim's involvement in art began with the practical; for a number of years he was a professional painter and ceramicist in Scotland and Wales, before returning to university to study literature and the history of art, then training to teach adults. For the last 20 years he has been a freelance cultural art historian, specialising in 17th and 19th century art and society. He now lectures for the universities of Cambridge, Nottingham and Hull; the WEA, the Art Fund and presents residential study courses in Britain and Europe. He has recently completed a month long lecture tour of Western Australia.

More delights from this ever popular speaker.

After a generation in University life, Tom Duncan has now retired from teaching to concentrate on lecturing to a wider public, and to leading tours to his major areas of interest: the architecture and archaeology of Ireland, and the Mediterranean basin.

“The Tudor Century was an explosive one”. We are invited to look at Holbein’s portraits in the royal collections as well as miniatures by Hilliard and Oliver. In addition we shall hear the music of the time. Byrd, Ludford and possibly Elizabeth’s Madrigalists.

Born on the Isles of Scilly and educated at Truro School, Cornwall, and Birmingham University,Mark Cottle's career has been spent in education and training at home and abroad. He has lectured at Exeter College on Medieval and Tudor history, St Mark's & St John's University College, Plymouth, and at Bath University on Anglo Saxon and medieval England. Currently he runs two small companies providing training and study breaks

Founded in 1925, Faber and Faber built a reputation as an important publishing house, in a large part due to the firm’s insistence on good design and illustration. Rex Whistler, Peter Blake and Damien Hirst  are amongst the artist invited to design covers.

Toby is an experienced lecturer and public speaker who has been accredited by The Arts Society since 2012. His career began with Natural Sciences at Cambridge and has been through investment banking, management consulting and five years as managing director of the publishing company founded by his grandfather, Faber and Faber, where he remains on the board. He is also non-executive Chairman of its sister company, Faber Music and a director of Liverpool University Press.

Camouflaging ships in wartime was invented by Norman Wilkinson during WW1,but a professional conjuror, Jasper Maskelyne, accomplished astonishing illusions to confuse Rommel in WW2.Even the Suez Canal was disguised.

An art historian and archaeologist, Nicholas Reed, in the 1980s became Founder- Chairman of the Friends of Shakespeare's Globe. In 2005 he was one of two Lecturer Representatives on the The Arts Society Advisory Council and also Vice-Chairman of Folkestone. He is the author of four books on the Impressionists in England, and one on the Frost Fairs on the Frozen Thames. His latest book My Father, the Man who Never Was features in his latest lecture.

Fiona Wemyss will take us through 144 years of change and development in this family enterprise from its philanthropic beginnings to its present operation.

"Many gardeners visit China to collect plants but few go to look at the gardens. In addition this lecture looks at the wider cultural aspects of this country and its contradictions. Since 1986 I have given 1,500 public lectures. This was originally part of my work as director of the Oxford University Botanic Garden from 1988 to 2014. Botanic gardens are often described as living museums, and garden curators lecture about them in the same way as museum curators talk about their collections. Since 2014 I have been a college lecturer and tutor at Somerville College Oxford. Gardens are often thought of a place where science and art meet on equal terms. My lectures investigate this relationship."

One of the foremost Scottish artists of the present day, Dr. Cairns’ work is mainly autobiographical and based on past memories.
We hope to be invited into her imaginative world as well as learning about the running of such a prestigious organisation.
 

Vermeer’s origins, early training and influences from “excellent and famous” to the bankruptcy and on to the 20th century revival known as the “Cult of Vermeer”.

Leslie Primo: 

Andrew was inspired to produce this lecture after visiting the National Portrait Gallery, and seeing all the Tudor and Stuart monarchs, in all their finery, and wondering where were and what are all the jewels that they wore.

Among the many jewels he traces, Andrew follows some pearls that belonged to Catherine De Medici then Mary Queen of Scotts, Queen Elizabeth Ist and now are worn by Oueen Elizabeth II. Also a spectacular diamond that belonged to King Charles Ist, later worn by Marie Antoinette, which was stolen then purchased by a Russian Aristocrat and later mounted in a tiara by Cartier for and American Heiress, when she became a British member of parliament! Jewel hunting has never been more fascinating.

Andrew Price: has had a passion for the jewellery since he was a small child. In fact his enthusiasm can be traced back to the time when, at the age of three, he swallowed his one of his mother’s pearl earrings having found her jewel box hidden from him in a cupboard. The very first piece of jewellery he created was a ring made of copper wire pulled from the back of a television. He presented it to his grandmother (it turned her finger green and gave her a rash). He then created a necklace for his mother using beads taken off her wedding dress (she was not at all happy).

In 1980, when he was nine, Andrew's mother took him to the Princely Magnificence exhibition at the V&A, exhibiting Renaissance jewels dating from 1500 to 1630. It proved a revelation. Dazzled by the splendour and opulence of the jewels on show, Andrew decided then and there that creating jewellery was what he wanted to devote his life to. His passion for jewellery grew when, in 1984 on his first ever visit to Bond Street, Andrew viewed an exhibition by Castellani and Giulianoe at Wartski & Co’s. While there, he was allowed to handle beautiful 18th century gold boxes and magnificent imperial Russian pieces by Fabergé. In 1987, just before leaving school, he took time off to visit Geneva to view the astonishing Sotheby’s auction of the Duchess of Windsor's jewellery collection. Here, for the first time, he held pieces created by some of the world's greatest jewellers, fashioned from only the finest of stones and set in designs of outstanding quality. For the young Andrew, it was a life-changing experience.

In August of that year, two weeks after his 16th birthday, Andrew started work in London’s Bond Street, working for The Antiques Roadshow expert Ian Harris. Under his guidance, Andrew developed an appreciation for jewels that were valued for their quality of design and craftsmanship, rather than for how much the stones in the piece were worth. He then joined the renowned contemporary jeweller Elizabeth Gage and worked with her on the design and production side. Through her and her private collection, Andrew was able to see and handle rare and extraordinary stones with names such as Sphene, Andalusite, Spinel and Dioptase, many of which are far rarer than diamonds. Elizabeth Gage was to have an enormous influence on Andrew's sense of what was possible within the realm of jewellery

You will learn what wine was found in Tutankhamen's tomb and how over thousands of years of drinking wine it features on pottery, murals, paintings, architecture and much more.

David Wright: Tim's involvement in art began with the practical; for a number of years he was a professional painter and ceramicist in Scotland and Wales, before returning to university to study literature and the history of art, then training to teach adults. For the last 20 years he has been a freelance cultural art historian, specialising in 17th and 19th century art and society. He now lectures for the universities of Cambridge, Nottingham and Hull; the WEA, the Art Fund and presents residential study courses in Britain and Europe. He has recently completed a month long lecture tour of Western Australia.

Please note that this is a Zoom lecture

Maybe strange gifts to bring a newborn child with no obvious regal connections. Discover why the wise men chose them not for practicality but for symbolism.

Tom Duncan: After a generation in University life, has now retired from teaching to concentrate on lecturing to a wider public, and to leading tours to his major areas of interest: the architecture and archaeology of Ireland, and the Mediterranean basin.

Please note that this will be a Zoom lecture

Before the British arrived in India, the Indian subcontinent was ruled by the Mughal Emperors. The stunning buildings and gardens they constructed from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century have left an indelible stamp on India’s architectural and cultural landscape. Mughal architecture fused elements from Islamic, Persian, Turkish and Indian architectural traditions, and gave rise to some of the most beautiful and iconic buildings in the world. From the Jama Masjid in Delhi, to the Taj Mahal in Agra, to the Shalimar Gardens in Lahore, this lecture will take you on a tour of some of India’s greatest buildings, and provide insight into the historical contexts and colourful personalities involved in their construction.

Dr John Stevens is a Research Associate at SOAS, University of London, and a member of academic staff at the SOAS South Asia Institute. His PhD in History is from University College London. He teaches British Imperial history, Indian history and Bengali language, and is a regular visitor to India and Bangladesh. He publishes widely in the fields of British and Indian history. His biography of the Indian guru Keshab Chandra Sen – Keshab: Bengal’s Forgotten Prophet - was published by Hurst and Oxford University Press in 2018. He appears regularly in the Indian media, and was recently a guest on BBC Radio Four’s In Our Time, discussing the poet and artist Rabindranath Tagore.

Please note that this will be a ZOOM lecture 

Debo, The remarkable life and work of Debo who became Duchess of Devonshire, and her time at Chatsworth House.

Deborah was the youngest of the celebrated Mitford sisters. When she married Lord Andrew Cavendish in 1941 she would become chatelaine of one of Europe's finest stately homes, Chatsworth House. From the 1950's onwards she made the 'Palace of the Peak' in Derbyshire into both a glorious public spectacle but really for the first time a consummate stylish private home.

Simon Seligman: Studied art and architectural history at Warwick University, including a semester in Venice. Also Graduate of the Attingham Summer school. From 1991 until 2010, worked at Chatsworth, in a variety of roles, latterly as Head of Communications. Has lectured about Chatsworth, the Devonshire Collection and associated topics, throughout the UK and on several US tours (including the Metropolitan Museum and the National Gallery of Art). Gave numerous public presentations and interviews with  Deborah, the late  Duchess of Devonshire. 

From the beginning of time the fascination with magic and the impossible has been widespread. Egypt was the cradle of magic. Sorcerer Priests used scientific principles to create illusions for the edification of worship and to hold power over the people. Where there was power there was magic. Then there is the age-old skill of sleight of hand, which proves that ‘the hand is quicker than the eye’. Magicians were known as ‘Jongleurs’ lest they be sentenced to death for ‘witchraft and conjuration’ under the edicts of Henry VIII.

With the emergence of the Music Hall, Magic gained a new respectability and audiences flocked in their thousands to watch the extraordinary feats of The Great Illusionists. This gave birth to legendary tricks such as pulling a rabbit from a hat and sawing a lady in half. And if magicians guarded their secrets with their lives, how was the Magic Circle formed ? – Home to 10,000 secrets.

Even Today in our super technical age of ipods and broadband, the wonder and surprise of magic are as popular as ever, not forgetting the Harry Potter craze.

'Wonder Workers and the Art of Illusion' is a whistle stop tour of the history of mystery from 3000 BC to the 21st century and be careful! – you might be amazed and bewitched.

Bertie Pearce: Has a BA (Hons) in Drama from Manchester University, and a Diploma Internationale from the École Internationale du Théatre, Jacques Lecoq. A member of the Inner Magic Circle, with Gold Star. Past experience includes lecturing and performing on cruise ships, and to U3A, historical societies, festivals, schools and colleges. In addition, has toured the world with a magic cabaret show and a one man show entitled All Aboard. Has written articles for newspapers and magazines on entertainment and theatre.

Dear members: You will be aware that the situation is changing rapidly regarding the coronavirus pandemic, with increasing measures being taken at government and local levels to delay the spread of the virus.  With the wellbeing of our members in mind, the committee has therefore decided to cancel all lectues for this season.

This talk combines the lives of the Astors, the Sackville Wests and the Rothschilds and their family history with the story of the gardens they have all created, despite their very different backgrounds, here in the British countryside.

Caroline Rayman: has lectured for many years to universities and art organisations in America and on cruise boats. She was an official guide at the:  British Museum and has published articles on samplers. Her lectures range from the role of the royal mistress in history to more scholarly lectures on Frederick the Great of Prussia.

Dear members: You will be aware that the situation is changing rapidly regarding the coronavirus pandemic, with increasing measures being taken at government and local levels to delay the spread of the virus.  With the wellbeing of our members in mind, the committee has therefore decided to cancel all lectues for this season.

During the nineteenth century Wilkie was considered one of the great pioneers of Western art – as significant internationally as J.M.W. Turner; but in the twentieth century his homely humour was consigned to obscurity by Modernism. David Wilkie was born in Scotland, the son of a minister in Cults, Fifeshire. From his arrival in London in 1805 he pushed Western art into a new era of expressive precision. My thesis is this – that in figure painting Wilkie’s psychological penetration makes the facial expressions in pictures by Raphael, Botticelli, Leonardo and Michelangelo look bland and imprecise by comparison; and his exceptionally observant interaction of character is a development beyond these Renaissance painters. 

Tim Stimson:Tim's involvement in art began with the practical; for a number of years he was a professional painter and ceramicist in Scotland and Wales, before returning to university to study literature and the history of art, then training to teach adults. For the last 20 years he has been a freelance cultural art historian, specialising in 17th and 19th century art and society. He now lectures for the universities of Cambridge, Nottingham and Hull; the WEA, the Art Fund and presents residential study courses in Britain and Europe. He has recently completed a month long lecture tour of Western Australia.

Will Maclean’s visual language includes Drawings,Paintings and Sculpture that relate to the History and Folklore of the Scottish Highlands and to his vocation as a merchant mariner. His work is highly acclaimed and held in national and international collections.

Will Maclean: born in Inverness in 1941 was an artist and professor of art. He was a midshipman on HMS Conway at Anglesey in Wales before attending Gray's School of Art, Aberdeen and then the British School at Rome as part of a year on a Scottish Education Department Travelling Scholarship.  He now lives in Tayport. 

Message from our Chair, Cynthia Robb - " our lecturer for tomorrow, Peter Medhurst has had to cancel due to the adverse weather conditions. He did try very hard to get alternative transport , but no luck. He was most apologetic and has set another date to come up next session.

Louise, our Programme Planner has managed to get a replacement speaker for tomorrow afternoon and he will talk about "Art and Oceanography"

 William Hunter, pioneer obstetrician and collector extraordinaire. This remarkable medical man compiled an extensive collection on a grand scale which is displayed now in the Hunterian Museum in Glasgow.

Evelyn Silber: Educated at the Universities of Cambridge and Pennsylvania, worked at Birmingham Museums and Art Galleries, then 1995-2001, Director of Leeds Museums and Galleries. 2001-6 Director of the Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery, University of Glasgow. Author of books on Jacob Epstein and Gaudier-Brzeska. Has lectured for societies, universities and museums in Britain and the USA. Former Chair of Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society. Lectured for ADFAS in Australia and The Arts Society in New Zealand in 2014. Advises and leads cultural tours in and around Glasgow.

The reign of Louis XV saw a flowering of the Decorative Arts in France which was unprecedented. Against a background of political turmoil and unrest the small exclusive côterie at the Versailles acted out their lives against a background of luxury and good taste which the rest of the world sought to emulate and acquire. That this was so was largely due to the influence of a woman of bourgeois background called Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson. Having become mistress of Louis XV in 1745, she remained en poste until her death in 1764, even though the passion of the liaison had cooled. During that time she encouraged the arts through her patronage of artists such as François Boucher, and her encouragement of the porcelain manufactory at Sèvres, to name but two. A remarkable woman, an accomplished woman who maintained her somewhat equivocal position through her own personality and charm which in its turn embellished the “Arts of France”. 

Nicholas Merchant:

His career has mirrored his abiding interest in antiques. He has worked for some of the major auction houses in London as well as running his own book business devoted to the decorative and fine arts. His particular interest is English 18th century furniture and country houses; he enjoys discussing objects, particularly in their historical context. He lectures extensively in the USA, South Africa, Europe and UK, including the V&A, as well as for the principal cruise lines. He is the Art Fund's West Yorkshire Representative. He arranges specialist short breaks for collectors and a range of prestigious clients including groups of The Arts Society who enjoy visiting the treasures of the UK.

After its total destruction in the First World War , we will see what Ypres was like before in all its splendour and what it is like now.  You will see photographs taken before WWI and then the same buildings after the destruction and again images of the buildings taken very recently. No library shots used, only original material including Christopher's own photographs. 

Christopher Chanter: Has led lectures, study days and workshops. Author of articles on restoration, consultant on restoration to the Georgian Group. Chairman of Historic Buildings Committee, Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Society 1999-2004. Correspondent to the Council of British Archaeology.

The study of the History of the Interior became important from 1950. By looking at the background of paintings one can have a very reasonable idea of what the Interiors of that particular time looked like. The artists who have focused on the Interior behind their figures, are not normally the most well-known painters in History of Art.

The Italian artists of the late 15th century show their handling of perspective through beautiful floors and the rich wall coverings of the period often feature behind “The Birth of the Virgin”.  Holbein includes, at times, details of the Interior and of course the 17th century Baroque style is well covered by the great Dutch Painters – Vermeer and De Hooch.

William Hogarth introduces the interiors of the Early Georgian period and the Rococo style is seen through Francois Boucher’s ‘conversation pieces’. Devis and Zoffany will show more possibilities for the English 18th century Interior. By the late 1700s watercolours of the interior become common place and we shall see some by Turner.

The great French artist, Ingres, did some superb portraits with the sitter leaning on the mantelpiece in front of a large mirror which reflects the interior and the objects of the early 19th century.  The numerous styles favoured in the 1800s will be seen through the paintings of Robert Braithwaite Martineau, Holman Hunt and Whistler amongst others.

Vuillard, Bonnard and Duncan Grant will finish the story.  

Diana Lloyd: Freelance lecturer in ceramic, glass and the history of interior decoration in Europe, North and South America. Lectures at the Inchbald School of Design, the Interior Design School and for American University Groups, National Trust and Antiques Societies and Christie's Education. Guides groups through museum collections and country houses. Collects ceramics and glass. Diploma with Distinction in the Fine and Decorative Arts, Inchbald School of Design.

Through Anthea's extensive knowledge of Architecture, we look at the development of the buildings which have grown upwards and become iconic images.

Anthea Streeter: studied the Fine and Decorative Arts in London and continued her studies at Harvard University. It was while at Harvard, where there was great enthusiasm for American design, that she became interested herself in 20th century architecture. Since returning from America she has taught on courses in Oxford and London, lectured on the Country House course in Sussex, and for several private groups around the country. Special interest in the architecture and design of 20th century.

The AGM will precede this lecture.

Just outside Edinburgh and set in the grounds of Bonnington House, Jupiter Artland is  breathtaking sculpture park that features the works of many internationally acclaimed contemporary artists and sculptors.

Nicky Wilson: Robert and Nicky Wilson bought Bonnington House, a Jacobean manor house within an 100-acre estate, in 1999. Within a few years, the formal gardens, fields and woodlands surrounding this historic house began to suggest the perfect milieu for Nicky Wilson's long-held ambition to create a sculpture park.

Nicky, herself a sculptor manque since the birth of her four children had always been deeply influenced by Ian Hamilton Finlay's Little Sparta, some thirty miles as the crow flies, from Bonnington. Here, she believed, in this ancient place with reputed Knights Templar connections, art and nature, home and family, livestock and the footfall of those interested in contemporary sculpture could all co-exist. She and Robert, as serious collectors, knew many leading contemporary artists. Why not provide them with the opportunity to create new works in their grounds? They couldn't find any reason not to. So Jupiter Artland began to take shape.

All our lectures are held at the Cupar Corn Exchange  - in the upper hall - on the second Tuesday of each month.

They begin at 2 p.m. prompt and we request that the audience be in the seats by 1:50. 

We invite you to join us for tea/coffee and to meet the lecturer.  This takes place  after the lecture in the ground floor hall. 

On Ernest Shackleton’s third Antarctic expedition in 1914, his ship, the Endurance, was trapped and eventually crushed in the pack ice. After camping for five months on the ice, Shackleton’s men rowed to the remote Elephant Island. From there, Shackleton sailed for help to South Georgia over 800 miles away. Over three months later he returned to rescue the crew of the Endurance.

Frank Hurley, one of the great photographers of the 20th century, was the expedition’s official photographer. His photographs are a visual narrative of an epic journey which capture with great artistry new and amazing landscapes within which a remarkable human drama is played out.

The aim of the lecture is to capture Hurley’s achievements as a photographer of the Antarctic in the first flush of human contact when it was still essentially terra incognita.

Mark Cottle: His career has been spent in education and training at home and abroad. He has lectured at Exeter College on Medieval and Tudor history, St Mark's & St John's University College, Plymouth, and at Bath University on Anglo Saxon and medieval England. Currently runs two small companies providing training and study breaks.

All our lectures are held at the Cupar Corn Exchange  - in the upper hall - on the second Tuesday of each month.

They begin at 2 p.m. prompt and we request that the audience be in the seats by 1:50. 

We invite you to join us for tea/coffee and to meet the lecturer.  This takes place  after the lecture in the ground floor hall. 

Faberge's creations of fantasy range from Imperial Easter eggs for the Russian Tsars, to fabulous animals and flowers for the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII).

The story  of the House of Faberge is inextricably linked to the ill fated Romanovs.

Pamela Halford:  is a freelance lecturer. She has lectured variously to the English Speaking Union, National Trust, Art & Historical societies, Festivals, The National Gallery and Bath University's Department of Continuing Education.  Previously lecturer and researcher/scriptwriter/director (BBC).

All our lectures are held at the Cupar Corn Exchange  - in the upper hall - on the second Tuesday of each month.

They begin at 2 p.m. prompt and we request that the audience be in the seats by 1:50. 

We invite you to join us for tea/coffee and to meet the lecturer.  This takes place  after the lecture in the ground floor hall. 

A study of Dutch flower painting particularly the history of the tulip in the 17 th Century.

Sophie Oostwijk: Although Sophie lives in Holland now, she formerly lived in Pittenweem. 

All our lectures are held at the Cupar Corn Exchange  - in the upper hall - on the second Tuesday of each month.

They begin at 2 p.m. prompt and we request that the audience be in the seats by 1:50. 

We invite you to join us for tea/coffee and to meet the lecturer.  This takes place  after the lecture in the ground floor hall. 

Dr James Grant: As a retired country doctor with a lifetime of working in the NHS both in hospital and rural practice Dr Grant is passionate about all aspects of medicine, its history and its relationship to art and artists.

Disease and how it is perceived and depicted by artists can tell us something very fundamental about what it is to be human. It tells us how we respond to the fear of the unknown, of disability and death. It also tells us about the fundamental human need to believe in something greater than oneself as a source of comfort and support. This lecture explores how artists have tackled these difficult themes in relation to epidemic infectious diseases such as leprosy, smallpox, AIDS and Ebola! It recognises how artists can be remarkably positive amidst suffering. All is not doom and gloom!

Dr James Grant: "As a retired country doctor with a lifetime of working in the NHS both in hospital and in rural practice I am passionate about all aspects of medicine, its history and its relationship to art and artists. I feel very strongly that lecturing should be stimulating, informative and entertaining. I have been very privileged to be able to share my interests with others lecturing to a variety of different groups and now as a lecturer for The Arts Society."

The story of the exceptional life of the Dowager Empress Cixi who became the effective ruler of China from1862 until her death in 1908.

Based on recently found court records, we discover her imperial achievements as well as her passion for fashion.

David Rosier:  A Chartered Insurer by profession and a Fellow of the Assurance Medical Society, with extensive international experience as an author and lecturer in Medical Risk Assessment. He has in excess of 25 years of working and living in Asia. Whilst living in Hong Kong (1991-2004) he assembled a collection of approximately 700, predominately Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), Imperial and related textiles/costume accessories. Past Committee Member of the Hong Kong Textile Society and frequent speaker on Imperial Insignia and Badges of Rank.

Cardinal Salvati hosted a magnificent feast where a culinary sensation was served, described by the Duke of Mantua as “ a kind of Indian peacock”.

This was the earliest mention of what we now know as turkey.

Tom Duncan: After a generation in University life,  Tom Duncan has now retired from teaching to concentrate on lecturing to a wider public, and to leading tours to his major areas of interest: the architecture and archaeology of Ireland, and the Mediterranean basin.

From pristine backdrop to the tempestuous snow storms of Turner, to the capturing of ‘snow effect’ by the Impressionists, the ability of artists to convey snow as a symbol of peace but also of grandeur and terror is compelling.

Sue Jackson: Originally in art and design publishing (Phaidon and Yale University Press), now lectures for the National Trust, U3A, City Literary Institute. A qualified Blue Badge Guide, she gives guided walks on various themes and has published work on the lost world of the River Fleet.

Banquets were about display in the castles and palaces of Medieval Europe -the heron served roasted was considered a noble bird – but was tough and tasted rather oddly of fish.

Dining as spectacle continued to be the norm at the courts and palaces of Europe into the early 20th century. 

This talk will take you from the medieval period with its trenchers, being above or below the salt; blackbirds baked in a pie and the overt buffet display of silver and gold – to the formal settings of the Edwardian period. 

As the hour of fashionable dining changed and so did the delivery of the food along with the dressing of the tables; and the eating parlour had become the fixed dining room by the early 19th century. The great displays of sugar paste sculpture for the table continued into the 18th century where confectioners' artistry was replaced by porcelain figures first produced at Meissen in Saxony. In my work for the National Trust I developed and delivered appropriate and seasonal table settings for many of their great houses –including Lyme Park, Uppark,  Penrhyn Castle and Clandon.

David Evans: Initially trained as carpenter and joiner. Worked for the OU and the Museum of Welsh Life. Property Manager for the National Trust Petworth; previously Curator at Lyme Park. Lectures extensively for the National Trust and the Victorian Society.

This lecture will trace foreign artists from the Tudor Period through to the Renaissance and Baroque , looking at their origins and why they came to work in England.

Leslie Primo: holds a BA in Art History and an MA in Renaissance Studies from Birkbeck College, University of London. He was Visiting Lecturer in Art History at the University of Reading in 2005 and 2007, and gives lectures and guided tours, plus special talks, at both the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. 

Drawing on her own deep involvement with the recent restoration of this remarkable 18th century country house, Charlotte will take you on a journey from the creation of Dumfries House in the 18th century to its recent renaissance under the visionary leadership of HRH The Prince Charles who saved the house for the nation in 2007. The project, whose origination is every bit as fascinating as its subsequent evolution and emergence as a model for heritage-led regeneration, has all the ingredients of a fairy tale.

Charlotte Rostek was recently appointed Head of the Glasgow branch of Scottish Auctioneers Lyon & Turnbull, Charlotte retains strong links with Dumfries House in Ayrshire, the 18th century Adam designed stately home which was saved for the Nation by HRH The Prince Charles in 2007. As inaugural curator there, Charlotte has played a key role in the renaissance of this heritage treasure, transforming it from a virtually unknown secret to an established visitor experience, a vibrant Royal residence and a leading model of heritage-led regeneration. With a working record in the heritage and culture sectors, both in Scotland and in Germany, Charlotte is enthusiastic and knowledgeable and believes in the accessibility of art.

The lecture will be held at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

Based in Newmarket, the centre of horse racing for nearly 400 years, Christopher Garibaldi introduces the pictorial heritage of equine art.  He has also catalogued the silver in the Royal Collections of Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle.

Christopher Garibaldi is Director of the National Horseracing Museum, Newmarket. Senior Curator & Assistant Keeper of Art (Decorative Art) at Norwich Castle Museum 1998-2003. 1997-1998 Curator for exhibition George Wickes of Bury St Edmunds, Royal Goldsmith. 1994-1997 Catalogued the silver in the Royal Collection at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and the Speaker's Residence - The House of Commons.

The lecture will be held at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) and Diego Rivera (1886-1957) have iconic status in Mexico. Rivera's intricate visual narratives, rich with allegory and symbolism, adorn the walls of public buildings. Inspired by Aztec and Maya imagery, and by early Italian fresco painting, his vast murals combine social criticism with faith in human progress. Kahlo's work, unlike Rivera's, is small in format. Arguably Mexico’s most original painter, she made herself the principal theme of her art. Her paintings reflect her experiences and dreams. This lecture surveys the work of both artists; it chronicles their turbulent marriage and Mexico's history after the 1910 Revolution

Chloe Sayer is a freelance specialist in the art and culture of Latin America. Has lectured in the UK, Canada, Ireland, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. Has curated exhibitions, and assisted on TV documentaries for BBC and Channel 4. Has made collections in Mexico and Belize for the British Museum, and is Research Associate in the Department of World Cultures at the Royal Ontario Museum. In 2016 she was awarded the prestigious Ohtli medal by the Mexican government for her long-standing commitment to Mexican culture. Her many publications include Mexican Textiles (British Museum Press, 1990), Arts and Crafts of Mexico (Thames & Hudson, 1990),  Focus on Aztecs and Incas  (Watts Books, 1995), The Incas - The Ancient World (Wayland, 1998), Textiles from Mexico  (British Museum Press, 2002), and  Mexico: Clothing and Culture (Royal Ontario Museum, 2015). Has also published articles in travel guides, newspapers and magazines.

The lecture will be held at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

From the early Kosovan silver mines which are mentioned in Dante, through the twentieth century politics over Kosovo’s mines which resulted in both a war and a golf course, a silver thread winds through Kosovo’s history. Its most intricate tanglings are in the country’s cultural capital, Prizren, where a seventh generation of filigree artisans use ‘filum’ and ‘granum’, zigzags, ‘mouse-tooth’ designs and - over twists and turns -  to magic lacy creations from dull sticks of raw material. The results – in boxes, buttons, jewellery, religious ornamentation and the talismans of superstitition – are a fine narrative of Kosovo’s history and traditions.

Elizabeth Gowing studied at Magdalen College Oxford before training as a teacher and working in Lambeth, Hackney and Islington. Moved to Kosovo in 2006 and there worked with the Ethnological Museum in Prishtina and co-founded ‘The Ideas Partnership’, a charity working on education and cultural heritage projects. Speaks fluent Albanian and has translated two books (the unauthorized biography of Yugoslavia’s longest-held political prisoner, Adem Demaci, and the memoirs of one of the leaders of the 1912 uprising). Also the author of four books about Kosovo – Travels in Blood and Honey; becoming a beekeeper in Kosovo (2011), Edith and I; on the trail of an Edwardian traveller in Kosovo (2013); The Rubbish-Picker’s Wife; an unlikely friendship in Kosovo (2015) and The Silver Thread; a journey through Balkan craftmanship (2017). Regular contributor to Radio 4 (Saturday Live, Excess Baggage, From Our Own Correspondent) and the BBC World Service.

The lecture will be held at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

Many soldiers, especially from the First World War, returned with loss of limbs,disfigurement and shell shock. ‘Healing Stitches’ tells how ordinary people responded to these badly wounded soldiers, wanting to help at the most challenging time in a person’s life. One could become absorbed in needlecraft and, for a time, forget the injury, providing ‘hope’ for the future. Similarly, those who had lost loved ones were able to engage in needlecraft as personal therapy. This lecture explores the supportive help of needlecraft suppliers and practitioners. Therapeutic needlecraft began during the Crimea War, and continues to the present day where it is now seen as a recognised form of occupational therapy, with remarkable benefits.

Jacqueline Hyman gained textile conservation experience with Museums' Service.  Listed in ICON's Conservation Register she is an  Accredited Conservator-Restorer. She lectures and gives study days/courses for The Arts Society, Embroiderers' Guild, Lace Guild, Antique Collectors' clubs and others. Appeared on Channel 4, BBC 2 and the Discovery Channel.

The lecture will be held at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

David Annand, Fife based but internationally renowned sculptor will introduce us to his life and work.

From his website:

'My approach to commissions is evolutionary, I go armed with an open mind and no preconceived ideas so that I can create a sculpture that will fulfill the aspirations of the client base and design team or the local community wherever they are. My work has reached the stage, where the experience of large public art projects, the accumulated skills and the understanding of the potential of materials have created a strong database of practical and eminently realisable ideas.

Many sculptures I have a made are not just about 'creating a sense of place', they have become the place , that is street furniture and art, they are structures that people can walk into and use. Thus a relationship establishes itself through familiarity, there occurs a subliminal bond. The relationship moves from the practical to the aesthetic by quiet engagement not confrontation.' 

The lecture will be held at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

The Christmas Story has been the subject of many Stained Glass windows, beginning with the early jewels of coloured glass at Chartres, from the late 12th century.

The extra light required to illuminate the sculpture around the altar resulted in more painted decoration and less deep colour after the Black Death of 1348. The magnificent Renaissance window at Leon, in Spain, shows the development in design by the 16th century, and the painted Nativity at New College, Oxford, the new ideals of the 18th century.

The Victorians created a wealth of windows, and the damage of the Second World War gave artists like Chagall further opportunities. 

Diana Lloyd is a freelance lecturer in ceramic, glass and the history of interior decoration in Europe, North and South America. She lectures at the Inchbald School of Design, the Interior Design School and for American University Groups, NT and Antiques Societies and Christie's Education.

The lecture will take place at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

Discover the ingenious artists and designers who created the popular and enduring images of public information during World War II for campaigns such as: Dig For Victory, Lend A Hand On the Land, Is Your Journey Necessary, Make Do and Mend & Keep Calm and Carry On.

Featuring posters and paintings by Evelyn Dunbar, James Fitton, Abram Games, Hans Schleger (Zero), Dame Laura Knight and the story of the brilliant Cyril Kenneth Bird (Fougasse) who devised Careless Talk Costs Lives.

Dr James Taylor studied at the Universities of St Andrews and Manchester, and is a former curator of paintings, drawings and prints, and co-ordinator of various exhibitions and galleries, at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. He is also lecturer and ships' historian on board cruise ships. Publications include illustrated histories of Marine Painting (1995) and yachting art Yachts on canvas (1998), The Voyage of the Beagle: Darwin’s extraordinary adventure aboard FitzRoy’s famous survey ship (2008), Careless Talk Costs Lives: Fougasse and the Art of Public Information (2010) and Your Country Needs You: the Secret History of the Propaganda Poster (2013). 

The lecture will be held at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

In 1900 Florence had a foreign resident population of 30,000. Among these were many British and American aesthetes, attracted by the climate, the scenery, the art and the realisation that Renaissance villas and their gardens, no longer required by their ancestral owners, could be rented cheaply, complete with willing servants.

E.M. Forster’s Lady Helen Laverstock, in her Fiesole villa garden thought to be the setting of the Decameron, is only just fictional: Lady Sybil Cutting was just then busy improving the terraced garden of Lorenzo the Magnificent’s 15th-century Villa Medici to bring it more into line with her idea of how it should have been.

At Villa La Pietra, the informal English garden laid out by its 19th-century Italian owners was being remodelled by the British art dealer Arthur Acton into an ideal of the 17th-century Italian garden, financed by his rich American wife’s inheritance. And nearby, Bernard Berenson, arbiter of taste for the world’s museums and collectors, hired the architect Cecil Pinsent to transform the gardens of his ancient villa into the kind of terraces of mosaic, box and cypress he felt were appropriate.

And so it went on. All these gardens and others look out to this day over the famous view of Florence and the Arno valley, ringed by hills, villas, olive groves and the dreamy mists of antiquity.

Steven Desmond is an independent landscape consultant specialising in historic gardens and architecture since 1985; freelance lecturer, specialist tour leader and lecturer in Britain, Ireland, France, Germany and Italy.  Writer and broadcaster on historic gardens and related topics. Steven Desmond's book Gardens of the Italian Lakes, with photography by Marianne Majerus, is published by Frances Lincoln

The lecture takes place at 2 p.m. at the Corn Exchange, Cupar

Maria Merion, a 17th Century woman braved pirates and poisonous insects, to capture nature. Her illustrations were sought by collectors and royalty and left a lasting impression on science.

Dr Way is a garden historian, author , researcher and lecturer. She presented Lost Gardens for Channel 4 and has appeared on Gardener's World.  She has  a specific interest in the portrayal of plants and gardens in art and literature and the social aspects of garden history.  Her publications include A History of Women in the Garden, the highly illustrated A Nation of Gardeners, and a short biography of Gertrude Jekyll, as well as the quirky History of Garden Gnomes! 

The lecture takes place at 2 p.m. at the Corn Exchange in Cupar. 

Who were the women whose faces gaze out at us from the canvases of the Pre-Raphaelites? Suzanne Fagence Cooper explores the private lives of a revolutionary group of Victorian artists and the haunting stories of their loves.

Suzanne studied History at Oxford University and Art History at the Courtauld Institute, and at Christie's Education. Has lectured for numerous organisations including the V&A and Cheltenham Literary Festival, as well as tutoring the Oxford summer school. Has lectured on cruise liners, and undertaken broadcasts and consultancies for the BBC and Channel Four. Historical Consultant to Ralph Fiennes for The Invisible Woman, a film about Charles Dickens. Publications include Pre-Raphaelite Art in the Victoria and Albert Museum (2003), The Victorian Woman (2001), and Effie Gray, a biography of the Scottish wife of John Ruskin and John Everett Millais. A film based on her life, starring Emma Thompson, will be released in 2014.

The lecture takes place at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m

Covering almost two hundred years of changing silhouettes, this lecture looks at how both men and women have shaped their style through a range of undergarments. Looking at corsets and crinolines; calf pads and sleeve puffs the range of unusual objects is always a surprise!

Kate Strasdin has worked as a curator of textiles and dress for over 20 years and is now the Deputy Curator at the Totnes Fashion and Textile Museum. Is a Senior Lecturer in History and Theory at Falmouth University and a Special Visiting Lecturer for the DeTao Masters Academy in Shanghai. Publications include 'An Easy Day for a Lady' (Costume Journal, 2008) and 'Empire Dressing - the Design and Realisation of Queen Alexandra's Coronation Gown' (Journal of Design History, 2012). Kate's book on Queen Alexandra's wardrobe will be published by Bloomsbury Academic in 2018. She is one of the youngest practitioners of the dying art of Honiton lace.

The lecture takes place at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m

Art UK was set up to catalogue every oil painting in public ownership in the UK. This unique and ambitious project involved visiting 3,000 collections across the country and photographing over 212,000 paintings. These paintings are reproduced in an acclaimed series of hardback catalogues entitled Oil Paintings in Public Ownership. The paintings are freely available to view on the Art UK website (www.artuk.org). The lecture offers an insider’s view of the project and describes some unusual collections visited, intriguing paintings uncovered, detective work involved and assistance given by NADFAS members.

Mary Rose Rivett-Carnac gained a 1st class honours degree in History of Art and English Literature, and an MA in Victorian Studies from Royal Holloway, University of London. Has written several arts-related articles and in 2010 contributed a chapter on the Victorian artist F.D. Hardy to Wolverhampton Art Gallery's exhibition catalogue. Is a volunteer guide at Dorich House Museum, studio-home of the Russian sculptor Dora Gordine, and at Turner's House, Twickenham. Since 2007 has worked for the Public Catalogue Foundation on an acclaimed arts project that is the subject of her lectures.

The lecture takes place at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m

After 200 years and only six novels, Jane Austen’s understanding of the society of her times remain classic studies of love, life, class and money. Join Jane Tapley’s exploratory journey as to who she was and how she discovered her remarkable talent, which continues to resonate with readers of all ages and nationalities

Jane Tapley is currently Special Events Organiser, Theatre Royal Bath. Interviews visiting actors, writers, directors. Lectures regularly to theatre going societies, NT and history and fine arts groups. West Country Tourist Board Registered Blue Badge Guide/Lecturer. Author and researcher of theatre programme notes on Hamlet, Sheridan's The Rivals and Jane Austen's Emma. Theatrical landlady! Home Economist. Consultant to various TV productions of Jane Austen adaptations on food in the 18th and 19th centuries. Hosts and cooks period meals in her Regency house in Bath for the Jane Austen Festival and other literary groups.

The lecture takes place at the Cupar Corn Exchange at 2 p.m.

2016 was the 600th anniversary of the birth of Piero della Francesca so the perfect opportunity to revisit the work of this enigmatic painter. His grave, solid figures set in a timeless landscape and lit by a clear light encapsulate the harmony of man and his world that lay at the heart of Italian Renaissance thought, a perfect fusion of light and logic, which while reflecting his native countryside, conveys a spirituality that reaches out over time and boundaries. Whether working in the service of the church or of his patron, Federigo da Montefeltro, his paintings radiate a serenity and timelessness which will take us far beyond this anniversary.

Shirley Smith is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a part-time lecturer for the University of East Anglia and for the Department of Continuing Education of the University of Cambridge. Also lectures to the Art Fund and individual clubs and societies. She is particularly keen to set the art and architecture of the period in the context of the society for which it was produced.

Dutch artist and forger Han Van Meegeren committed the most lucrative, audacious art fraud of the 20th century. Today he is renowned as The Man Who Made Vermeers and duped a certain buyer, Reichmarschall Herman Göring. This lecture explores his extraordinary life, from a childhood passion for the 17th century painters of the Dutch Golden Age. His mixed fortune as an artist in his own right before developing a career as an art forger and criminal fraudster. It reveals how he slowly evolved the techniques to deceive the most authoritative art historians of the day He flourished just before and during the Second World War with a prodigious output of forged works eagerly purchased by wealthy Dutchmen. Despite the tumultuous conditions of that period he generated incredible wealth. Van Meegeren enjoyed an exotic lifestyle of wine, women and locations. The sale of his ‘Vermeer’, Christ with the Adulteress, in 1943 to Göring would ultimately lead to his downfall and arrest in 1945 as a collaborator, punishable by death. An incredible story of cunning, greed, treason, love and life.

Malcolm Kenwood is an experienced retired specialist police and private detective, investigating art and antique crime. Formerly the Recoveries Director for the Art Loss Register which operates an international commercial database of stolen cultural property. Formed his own company and developed training programmes designed to educate law enforcement officers in all aspects of this area of criminal activity, undertaken in partnership with the Metropolitan Police Art and Antiques Unit at New Scotland Yard, London. Has lectured to police conferences, customs officers, auction house staff, museum employees, Interpol and FBI.

The lecture starts with a history of nursery rhyme books from their humble beginnings in the 18th century to the classic productions of Walter Crane, Randolph Caldecott and Kate Greenaway in 1870s and 80s. Then comes a historical examination of the rhymes themselves (many are much older than the books), concluding with a discussion of the fanciful theories developed about origins by Victorian antiquarians. Sad to say, there is actually little evidence that 'Ring a Ring a Roses' has to do with catching the plague! .

Jeremy Barlow

Performer and writer on music. Two recent books include 'The Enraged Musician: Hogarth's Musical Imagery' (Ashgate) and 'The Cat and the Fiddle: Images of Musical Humour from the Middle Ages to Modern Times' (Bodleian Library). He contributed more than 150 entries to the 'Oxford Companion to Shakespeare'. His many CDs include the complete 'Beggar's Opera' (Hyperion), which received an Edison award.

The lecture is based on at least three years of research into why this Baltimore woman, born in 1896 into relative obscurity, was so demonised by the British establishment and wider commonwealth, accused of being a spy, prostitute or Nazi sympathiser, yet how, after she married the ex-King and became Duchess of Windsor, she turned her exile and hatred into a platform from which to launch herself as one of the world’s best dressed woman who entertained in the most elegant homes fit for a King – or an ex-King. Was she simply a clothes horse for dress designers and jewellery makers or did she have a heart that has never been fairly understood? I will include many pictures in this lecture of Wallis and the clothes and jewellery she had made especially for her as well as the homes she lived in. But I will also tell the story of how, in the context of the 1930s, this woman with three husbands was unacceptable as Queen of England and of the Empire. I will explore who this woman was and what was the power she had over King Edward Vlll. Seventy five years since the Abdication in 1936, it is now time to reassess That Woman.

Ann Sebba is a biographer, historian and author of eleven books who lectures to a variety of audiences in the US and UK, including the English Speaking Union, Royal Overseas League, National Trust, British Library and Imperial War Museum. A former Reuters foreign correspondent, Anne is now a broadcaster - she presented a BBC R3 documentary about the pianist Harriet Cohen and for Radio 4 the documentary "Who was Joyce Hatto?" - she regularly appears on television talking about her books, mostly biographies including Jennie Churchill, William Bankes, Laura Ashley and Wallis Simpson. The latter, published as That Woman, was an international bestseller. Her latest book is a history of Paris between 1939-49 through women's eyes published in 2016 as Les Parisiennes How the women of Paris Lived, Loved and Died in the 1940’s. Anne is a former chair of Britain's 9,000 strong Society of Authors.

Japan’s rich and varied culture, influenced by China’s Tea Gardens and beliefs, finds expression in temples, palaces, tea houses & living spaces. Suzanne Perrin describes the tea ceremony, a formalised ritual and entertainment that involved host & guest in the appreciation of tea, calm atmosphere, beautiful surroundings & graceful conduct.

Suzanne Perrin has is a Visiting lecturer at University of Brighton Art & Design School, and University of Cape Town, South Africa. She teaches on the Asian Arts course at the British Museum and the V&A. She founded Japan Interlink in 1995 to promote the understanding of Japan in educational and cultural circles: studied Nihonga (traditional Japanese painting) at Nagoya University of Arts, Japan, 1986-87. She lectures in South Africa each year. Conducted guided tours of Japan for students and adult groups; gave lecture tours on Japanese Art & Culture in Australia in 1987 and 2000 for ADFAS.

The title “Pots of Art from Grayson Perry” is a play on words. He has produced “lots” of work in a wide range of art forms and during the lecture I look at his vases, drawings, sculptures, tapestries and his “House for Essex”. Grayson Perry became famous in 2003, when he won the Turner Prize.  Ten years later he was awarded the CBE for services to contemporary Art. His Channel 4 series “All in the best possible taste” won a BAFTA award and lead to the production of six tapestries “The Vanity of Small Differences”, which have attracted a great deal of interest. In October to November 2014 he became the first artist to present the Reith lectures, which were warmly received. He has curated a very popular exhibition at the British Museum of around 30 of his own new works alongside around 170 objects by unknown men and women throughout history.  In 2015 he has had an exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, based on another Channel 4 series, “Who are you?”

Harry Fletcher has tutored three courses for the Open University - The History of Modern Art, Art and the Environment and Design, Processes and Products. He has worked as an OU examiner and A level examiner in the History of Art. He is a practising artist who has had work shortlisted for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. He has lead art appreciation holidays across Europe. As Head of Art & Design in a comprehensive school he taught A level Art, the history of art, printmaking, the history of printmaking and the history of architecture.

Professor Ian Beckett studied at the universities of Lancaster and London and became a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society in 1982. He has lectured for universities in the UK and US, various historical societies and on cruise ships.He is currently Professor of Military History at the University of Kent. Author of many publications on various aspects of war, including The Oxford History of the British Army (1994), The First World War: The Essential Guide to Sources in the UK National Archives (2003), The Victorians at War (2004),and The Great War (2007).

Amanda Herries read Archaeology & Anthropology at Cambridge. 1978-1988 Curator at Museum of London specialising in the decorative arts 1718 to present day, exhibitions, lectures, booklets, broadcasts. 1988-1995 moved with family to Japan, lecturing and writing on Oriental / Western cross-cultural and artistic influences. 1995 returned to UK, fundraising for arts companies, writing, lecturing and guiding tours to Japan. Most recent publications on Japanese plant and garden influences in the West.

Chloe Cockerill has an MA Trinity College, Dublin, Post-Grad Diploma in Librarianship, University of Wales. She was Regional Development Manager for the Churches Conservation Trust 2001-2010. Church tour leader. Member of a number of specialist societies including Ecclesiological, Church Monuments, Cambridge University Heraldic & Genealogical Society & The Heraldry Society and Guide at Ely Cathedral.

A graduate of Cambridge University in Archaeology and Anthropology, Spent ten years at the Museum of London as a Curator of 18th - 20th century decorative arts, lecturing, preparing exhibitions and maintaining collections in her department. For seven years Amanda lived with her family in Japan, liaising between English and Japanese private and public museum and arts collections, lecturing, writing and broadcasting on connected subjects. Building on a personal interest, the influence of the Japanese garden on the West became a speciality. She lectures on a wide number of topics in the UK and abroad She is a Freeman of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths (London) and the current cataloguer of oil paintings in Southern Scotland for the UK wide survey undertaken by the Public Catalogue Foundation. She leads cultural tours in Scotland and in Japan, is keen on music and the performing arts and continues a family tradition of living in Galloway.

Janet Brennan bought and restored Barholm Castle, a ruined 16th century Scottish tower and since then has researched and photographed dozens of castle restorations. She is a member of the Council of the Scottish Castles Association. Barholm was a stronghold of the McCullochs, who had owned the property since 1510. A strongly Protestant family, they feuded with the Catholic Browns of Carsluith Castle, only two miles to the north-west. Protestant preacher John Knox is said to have stayed here.

Imogen Corrigan - After nearly 20 years in the British army, went to the University of Kent to study Anglo-Saxon & Medieval History and Art, graduating with 1st class honours. She works as a freelance lecturer across Britain and Europe as well as lecturing on small cruise ships and running study tours on land.

Caroline Holmes has lectured in the UK, USA, Europe and Japan. She also lectures for the University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education, the Royal Horticultural Society, travel companies and the English Gardening School. She is a consultant designer specializing in evoking historical, artistic and symbolic references. Author of 9 books including Impressionists in their Gardens: living light and colour, Follies of Europe: Architectural Extravaganzas and Monet at Giverny. Theatre productions: How does your garden grow Mr. Shakespeare and Impressionists in their Gardens: living light and colour. Presenter and contributor on television and BBC Radio 4.

Dr Patricia R. Andrew FSA, FSAScot, AMA, FRSA, whose career has been mainly in museums and galleries in Scotland and England, is now a freelance consultant, researcher and lecturer. She has written many exhibition catalogues and has published widely on varied art-historical topics from the 18th to the 21st centuries. She is the author of A Chasm in Time: Scottish War Art and Artists of the 20th Century

Rosalind Whyte has degrees from Goldsmith’s College, and Birkbeck college. She is an experienced guide at Tate Britain, Tate Modern, the Royal Academy and Greenwich and lectures at Tate, Dulwich Picture Gallery, and to independent art societies and on cruises. She also leads art appreciation holidays.

Rupert Willoughby is a prize-winning historian who specialises in the domestic and social life of the past. A graduate with First Class Honours in History from the University of London, he is the author of the best-selling Life in Medieval England for Pitkin, of guides to castles owned by English Heritage and Hampshire County Council, and of a series of popular histories of places, including Chawton: Jane Austen’s Village and Basingstoke and its Contribution to World Culture. He contributes regular obituaries to The Times and The Daily Telegraph, writes privately-commissioned histories of houses, and is an experienced lecturer - and occasional broadcaster - on a broad range of topics, with a particular interest in architecture, interior decoration and costume.

Ms Kelly lectures on Western European art in France, Belgium and the UK. She worked at the National Gallery and, as a museum curator, at the Victoria Art Gallery, Bath. She lived for eight years in France and Belgium: working as a lecturer (French and English) in Toulouse and at the Fine Arts and Magritte Museum in Brussels. Since returning to the UK in 2009, she combines museum work with lecturing and teaching art history and also works with visually impaired people in art galleries.

Ms Gallimore has worked with country house collections for over ten years, specialising in eighteenth and nineteenth century interiors, furniture and ceramics. She worked as Senior Curator of Decorative Arts at Harewood House, and project-managed the restoration of the East Bedroom, including the conservation of the eighteenth century Chinese wallpaper. She also curated the accompanying exhibition entitled 'Chinoiserie at Harewood'. She has talked regularly for a variety of arts organisations and recently started lecturing on a Country House Studies Course at Hull University.

Caroline Holmes has lectured in the UK, USA, Europe and Japan, and was invited to lecture to ADFAS in 2012. She lectures for the University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education, the Royal Horticultural Society, travel companies and the English Gardening School. Consultant designer specializing in evoking historical, artistic and symbolic references. She is the author of 9 books including Impressionists in their Gardens: living light and colour, Follies of Europe: Architectural Extravaganzas and Monet at Giverny. Theatre productions: How does your garden grow Mr. Shakespeare and Impressionists in their Gardens: living light and colour. She is also a presenter and contributor on television and BBC Radio 4.

Dr Bostwick is lecturer and consultant in the Cultural History of the Medieval, Tudor and Stuart periods. A specialist in medieval imagery and interior furnishings and decoration 1400-1700 and Tour leader. Former Keeper of the Social History Collections, Sheffield City Museums. He is also Consultant on historic buildings and their interpretation to the National Trust, English Heritage and Historic Scotland.

A bookbinder, artist and teacher, Mr Riley first learned bookbinding at 16 from Benedictine Monks at Douai Abbey in Berkshire and later at the London College of Printing. He has worked at the V&A, and for various binderies in London, New York and San Francisco, and spends part of the year teaching across the USA. He has his bindery in the Lake District, from where he travels across the UK teaching master classes and lecturing. He is Vice President of the Society of Bookbinders and was elected a Fellow of Designer Bookbinders in 2008. His binding work is mostly the restoration of antiquarian books and Design Bindings. He has won many prizes in the Designer Bookbinders competition, including both first prizes and the Mansfield Silver Medal in 2007. His bindings are in collections worldwide, including the British Library and the John Rylands Library in Manchester. In 2010 he bound a special copy of the winner of the Booker Prize which was presented to the author. In June 2013 he won first prize in the prestigious Sir Paul Getty International Bookbinding Competition. His winning binding was acquired by the Bodleian Library in Oxford.

Joanna Mabbutt is a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Painter-Stainers, Freeman of the City of London, Project Manager, Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker - 850 Years of London Livery Company Treasures, Cultural Olympiad Exhibition, Guildhall Art Gallery 2012. Originally a trained singer, pianist and orchestra administrator, she is now a decorative artist who combines lace with gilding, printing and painting, working to commission and selling through exhibitions. Trained in wood graining, marbling, gilding, specialist paint finishes and interior design and awarded C&G Silver Medal for Excellence in 2000. She now lectures and runs workshops for both leisure and specialist groups.

Jane Tapley is Special Events Organiser, Theatre Royal Bath. She lectures regularly to theatre going societies, NT and history and fine arts groups. Author and researcher of theatre programme notes on Hamlet, Sheridan's The Rivals and Jane Austen's Emma. Consultant to various TV productions of Jane Austen adaptations on food in the 18th and 19th centuries. Hosts and cooks period meals in her Regency house in Bath for the Jane Austen Festival and other literary groups.

Ms Vallois has lived in Paris for over fifty years. An agrégée (post-graduate) of the Sorbonne. Author of the three-volume series 'Around and About Paris' - a comprehensive, in-depth cultural companion to the city, 'Romantic Paris', the Paris Entry of the Encarta Encyclopaedia. She is also the author of 'Averyon, A Bridge to French Arcadia', taking readers to the heart of rural France. Has dedicated her recent writing to the First World War. She lectures throughout the world and contributes to the international press, television and radio, the BBC, PBS (USA), Discovery, CNN, the Cultural Channel (France), among others. Occasionally conducts NADFAS tours in Paris.

Hilary Guise lectures in the main museums in London for American universities, and has toured widely in the USA and lectured for the Smithsonian Institution. Has also worked for the Art Fund, taught courses for Cambridge University, has been a guest speaker on cruises. Trained as a painter at Central St Martin’s, she exhibits abroad, most recently in Berlin and France. Lives in London and in Provence.

Jackie Marshall Hobbs is a freelance lecturer, guide, researcher and teacher, working at the Royal Pavilion, Preston Manor, and other museums. She has taught courses on architecture, local history, house history and design at the University. She has been a guest lecturer at University of Brighton. Initiates, researches and runs her own tours of Brighton Station, Palmeira Mansions, The Old Ship Hotel, local history walks and piers.

Mr Philip Long is Director of V&A Dundee and Honorary Professor of the University of Dundee. Mr Long was previously Senior Curator of the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art. From 2008 he also led the National Galleries of Scotland’s Artist Rooms project. An acknowledged expert in Scottish art and design, Philip has organised exhibitions and written highly praised publications on William Gillies, Anne Redpath, the Scottish Colourists, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, and on the architect Basil Spence. V&A Dundee is being delivered by Design Dundee Ltd, a ground-breaking partnership between the Victoria and Albert Museum - the world's greatest museum of art and design - and Dundee City Council, the Universities of Dundee and Abertay, and Scottish Enterprise.

Barry Venning is a historian of British Art with a particular interest in the work of J M W Turner, on whom he has published widely, including the volume on Turner in Phaidon’s Art & Ideas series. He was the BBC’s script consultant and expert commentator for a BBC TV programme on the Fighting Temeraire and contributed to the making of a BBC2 documentary called The Genius of Turner: Painting the Industrial Revolution, screened in April 2013. He has also published a study of John Constable’s paintings. His interests and his teaching extend to modern and contemporary art in all its forms. He is currently Associate Lecturer with the Open University and lecturing on a freelance basis for Nadfas, Christie’s Education and other organisations.

Graeme Cruickshank is an Edinburgh-based historian who is fascinated by the Picts and has written a book on the Battle of Dunnichen.

Roger Mitchell studied History at Oxford and Fine Art at Leeds. He was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to travel and study in the USA. He is a former College Vice-Principal who now lectures for the University of Liverpool and for Adult Residential Colleges. He organises and leads country house study tours and tries to find time for research at Chatsworth.

Christopher Bradley is an expert in the history and culture of the Middle East and North Africa. As a professional tour guide and lecturer he has led groups throughout the Middle East and Asia. He has written extensively on Arabia and is the author of The Discovery Guide to Yemen, Insight Guide to the Silk Road and Berlitz Guides to Libya; The Red Sea; Cairo; Abu Dhabi and Nile Cruising. As a photographer he has pictures represented by four photographic libraries. He has a broad range of lecturing experience, including to the Royal Geographical Society and the Royal Institute of British Architects. As a film producer and cameraman he has made documentaries for the BBC, National Geographic TV and Channel 4.

Christopher de Hamel is Donnelley Fellow Librarian of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. He was responsible for all catalogues and sales of illuminated manuscripts at Sotheby's for twenty-five years until 2000. He has doctorates from both Oxford and Cambridge and two honorary doctorates, and has written well over a hundred books and major articles on medieval manuscripts, translated into numerous languages. He is probably the best-known expert on medieval manuscripts in the world, and has given public lectures extremely extensively in six continents.

Food historian Annie Gray has degrees from Oxford (MA), York (MA) and Liverpool (PhD). Her PhD looked at the interplay of class and gender in driving dining change in the nineteenth century, while her masters was in archaeology, giving her a long-lasting interest in the materiality of the world around us. She works across the heritage industry, acting as a consultant on all matters relating to food and dining, as well as the use of live interpretation and the presentation of sites to the public. She also lectures widely, including to Historic Royal Palaces, #1 Royal Crescent Bath and York’s Fairfax House, on subjects ranging from the development of afternoon tea, to the history of cake. She is the author of a number of both academic and popular articles. . She leads up a team at the award-winning Audley End House (English Heritage), cooking and interacting with the public in the guise of servants in 1881. Annie is increasingly in demand from the media. She has appeared as a talking head on programmes such as The Great British Bake Off, and as a historical advisor to the recent Coffee and Calf’s Head (BBC4). She is a regular panellist on Radio 4’s The Kitchen Cabinet, hosted by Jay Rayner.

Thirza Vallois has lived in Paris for over forty years. She is an agrégée (post-graduate) of the Sorbonne and author of the three-volume series 'Around and About Paris' - a comprehensive, in-depth cultural companion to the city, 'Romantic Paris', the Paris Entry of the Encarta Encyclopaedia, and the recently published 'Averyon, A Bridge to French Arcadia'. she lectures throughout the world and contributes to the international press, television and radio, the BBC, PBS (USA), Discovery, CNN, the Cultural Channel (France), among others.

Harry Fletcher is a portrait painter and practising artist who has had work shortlisted for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. He has tutored the History of Modern Art, Art & Design and Art and the Environment for the Open University. He has led art appreciation holidays around the UK, in France and in Spain and he is a freelance lecturer. He gives painting demonstrations in oil, acrylic and pastel.