The November Coffee Morning will be slightly different this month, and is aimed at those who perhaps want to know a little more about what to look for in a picture.
For example, do you like this picture? Would you hang it on your wall, or would you prefer something altogether larger and more striking? Either way, if you look carefully, you may realise how skilfully the artist has put it together – the tiled floor recedes away from you, then the passage goes even further away, the figures are nicely rounded and not flat cutouts, the colours are warm and harmonious, creating a peaceful scene.
In this hour session we will try to unpick something of what makes a picture ‘work’, hopefully giving some ideas of what goes towards making a good, or even great work of art.
Presented by Georgia Fox
Helene Schjerfbeckin
The Arts flourished in Finland in the years leading up to independence in 1917. During her long life from 1862-1946, Helene Schjerfbeckin’s work evolved from a warm naturalism to austere modernity. Her many haunting self-portraits encourage the viewer to look and look again. In Finland, she is a star, but in our country, hers is an unfamiliar name. Should she be better known? In this Talking about Art, I will present her life and work and invite you to form your own opinion.
Presented by Anna Aveline
Two artists, Eliasson and Cranach
Presented by Mark Aveline and Rosemary Dewar
Ólafur Elíasson
In 2019, I went to In Real Life, a retrospective of work by Ólafur Elíasson at Tate Modern. I knew little of his work and found it a complete delight. In this coffee morning, we will begin with examples of his art at Tate Modern and then look at other instances of his large-scale installations. Elíasson, an Icelandic-Danish artist born in 1967, is known for sculptures and large-scale installation art which employ elemental materials such as light, water, and air temperature to enhance the viewer’s experience. He aims to capture physical phenomena in a way that appears both real and slightly artificial, while contained in a constructed space that invites viewers to participate. This may sound pretentious but I assure you is both fun and thought-provoking.
Presented by Rosemary Dewar
Lucas Cranach the Elder
The Royal Academy in London held an exhibition on him in 2008 and a much smaller exhibition was held last year at Compton Verney.
Lucas Cranach the Elder was born in 1472 and as a close friend of Martin Luther, he is the archetypal painter of the Protestant Reformation. He is one of the most versatile painters of his time with skills encompassing the female nude, landscape, animals and portraiture as well as religious and mythological subjects. As well as painting, he was a printmaker and book illustrator. He was financially more successful than his contemporary Albrecht Dürer. I hope to demonstrate something of the range and quality of this important artist.
Andy Goldsworthy, born in Cheshire in 1956, is a British sculptor, photographer and environmentalist who produces site-specific sculpture and land art in both natural and urban settings. The materials he uses include flower petals, leaves, grasses, icicles, pinecones, stone, wooden branches and even mud! Unpromising perhaps, but he produces the most beautiful works that display extraordinary imagination, patience, skill and craftsmanship. Usually ephemeral, his works often survive only in the photographs that he takes at the time.
Presented by Lisa Etheridge
Richard Wilson was born in Wales and is generally regarded as the first important pure landscape artist in the history of British art, influencing artists from Turner (who was a great admirer) onwards.
Joseph Wright of Derby is best known for his candle-lit paintings of scientific experiments, Italian landscapes and moonlit night scenes
The works and lives of these 18c pioneers in British landscape painting presented by Brian Etheridge
Talking about Art, a Virtual Coffee Morning
Wednesday 21st April: Sculptures
We have a wealth of knowledge among our members so for the April meeting, we are trying a change of format with five members sharing their appreciation of a favourite sculpture. To preserve the sense of surprise, we are not giving away too much about the works or the focus of each presentation, but there will be plenty of variety in the aspect considered. The illustrative photo is deliberately blurred in the hope that the image will tickle your curiosity. But it can be revealed that we will visit Manchester with Rachel Gallagher, New York with Georgie Fox, the V&A with Anna Aveline, Nice with Brian Etheridge and Denmark with Mark Aveline.
If the change goes well, we may do it again with different presenters in July, probably on the 14th
This coffee morning will be about the life and work of Samuel Palmer (1805-1881). He was an artist ahead of his time and was not much appreciated during his lifetime. The works that are most popular now, he kept hidden away for fear of derision.
Presented by Clare Iley
ANDERS ZORN – ‘SWEDEN’S MASTER PAINTER’
Anders Zorn [1860 – 1920] was an internationally respected painter in his lifetime, but his work is relatively unknown in Britain. He was a prolific artist, leaving over 5000 paintings, etchings, drawings and sculptures after a life packed with exhibitions and awards, travels and friendships. At the same time he never lost his love for the traditional life of Dalarna in central Sweden, where he grew up on his grandparents’ farm, and which he painted so memorably.
Presented by Anna Aveline. I will show you some of my favourite paintings and etchings and we will talk about his life.
We will discuss our reactions to the remarkable frescos by Luca Signorelli in the Chapel of St. Brizio, Orvieto.
These are the paintings which impressed and inspired Michangelo. They were painted at a time of a great plague and political unrest in Italy at the end of the 15th Century.
The TASC & TASOX group, including Carolyn Walton, went to Italy in September and saw these paintings. Carolyn will be leading the discussion
