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maltatoday | SUNDAY • 7 NOVEMBER 2021 6 CULTURE 7th October 2021 The Extraordinary Talent Of John Singer Sargent Few artists can match the achievements of this Ameri- can artist who trained in Paris and spent much of his life de- picting the world of the belle époque, from leisurely days on the Grand Canal, to the society women of New York. His style is uniquely his own, impres- sionistic and realistic at once, flamboyant and spontaneous with a bravura and exactitude reminiscent of Velasquez and Van Dyck. Few can fail to be inspired by his exquisite han- dling of colour, tone and light, whether in oils or watercolour, landscape or portrait, his geni- us is universal. Brian Healey has been a sen- ior modern languages teacher in an independent grammar school for many years. He has also enjoyed a successful par- allel career since the 1980s as a professional artist and interi- or designer. Since 2006 he has been regularly appointed to a number of prestigious ocean and river cruise lines, either as resident artist, guest lecturer on art history or as destination speaker for more than forty countries. Most recently this work has successfully extended to art guiding through impor- tant towns and museums in France, Belgium, Holland and Spain. 18th November 2021 The Art Of Pandemics The horrors of the corono- virus epidemic have, just as in previous centuries, been a source of inspiration to count- less artists. In contrast to the altarpieces and the secular paintings of the plague and previous epidemics, our pan- demic has led to an outpouring of remarkable street art. This lecture looks at the fascinating similarities and differences in pandemic artistic output over the centuries. It also looks at how such art can provide great comfort and consolation. James Grant is a retired coun- try doctor with a lifetime of working in the NHS both in hospital and in rural practice and passionate about all as- pects of medicine, its history and its relationship to art and artists. He feels very strongly that lecturing should be stim- ulating, informative and enter- taining. He feels very privileged to be able to share his interests with others lecturing to a vari- ety of different groups and now as a lecturer for The Arts So- ciety. 27th January 2022 The Foundations Of Fashion: The History Of Underwear From The 18th To The 20th Century 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 His- tory and Theory at Falmouth University and a Special Vis- iting Lecturer for the DeTao Masters Academy in Shanghai. Publications include An Easy Day for a Lady (Costume Jour- nal, 2008) and Empire Dressing - the Design and Realisation of Queen Alexandra's Coronation Gown (Journal of Design His- tory, 2012). Kate's book on Queen Alexan- dra's wardrobe was published in 2017 and she is working on her next book, The Secrets of a 19th Century Dress Dia- ry. She is one of the youngest practitioners of the dying art of Honiton lace. 3rd March 2022 Dante's Divine Comedy: Other- world Images From His Poem Often considered a daunting read, the Divine Comedy can also, and more approachably, be studied through its illustra- tions. Dante's visions of Hell, Purgatory and Heaven have provided a rich stream of in- spiration for over 700 years. With this talk we look at a se- lection of the many artists who have attempted to portray the otherworldly. Botticelli, Doré and Blake attempted all three realms, but many others have dipped in and out of the story, each imprinting his own cen- tury and beliefs on the finished art. Patsy Erskine-hill was brought up in Italy, France and Swit- zerland. She holds a first class degree in Italian from Trinity College, Dublin and a Masters degree in Imperial Russian his- tory from Edinburgh Universi- ty. Patsy ran her own business for many years, finishing with a 5 year contract teaching at a US university. Now back in the UK, she lectures widely to history societies, university groups, special interest associ- ations and on cruises. Her in- terests are the society, art and architecture of Imperial Russia, Italian history, art and culture and the English eighteenth century. 21st April 2022 Artists And The Theatre Since the early Renaissance the theatre was a setting for magnificent productions of drama, ballet and opera and through the use of ornate cos- tumes, complex stage sets and ingenious machinery, these performances were the source of wonder and awe. Painters, sculptors, fashion designers and architects have been un- derstandably drawn to the theatre which has hugely ben- efitted from their talent and inspiration and we look at how they have shaped stage design in all its forms from the devel- opment of perspective to 21st century technologies. Joanna Mabbutt is a Livery- man of the Worshipful Com- pany of Painter-Stainers and Freeman of the City of London. Originally a trained singer, pi- anist and orchestra adminis- trator, Jo is now a decorative artist who gilds antique lace and crochet, often combining with hand printing and paint- ing. She works to commission, sells through galleries and ex- hibitions and collaborates with other designers. Jo trained in wood graining, marbling, gilding, specialist paint finishes and interior de- sign and was awarded the City & Guilds Silver Medal for Ex- cellence in 2000. She taught in further edu- cation for eight years on Art & Design National Diploma and Foundation courses then up-skilled at Central St Mar- tin's College of Art & Design developing her own practice. She now divides her time as a designer/maker, lecturer and tutor running workshops for specialist groups. 2nd June 2022 "Outstanding And Precious", Unusual And Priceless", Kun- stkammern And The Culture Of Collecting This lecture will explore the beginnings of a collecting cul- ture in Europe as well as the motivations and conceptu- al framework which came to govern the organisation of art and artefacts in the Kunst- and Wunderkammern. From small, ornate tabletop cabinets craft- ed from rare woods and inlays to sequences of opulent rooms in princely palaces, European collectors brought together di- verse objects, often of an exotic provenance to impress upon visitors the collector's erudi- tion, wealth and power. Albert Godetzky's research concentrates on Northern Eu- ropean art of the early modern period. He is currently Associ- ate Lecturer at the Courtauld Institute where he received his PhD with a thesis on 'Haarlem Mannerism'. Before joining the Courtauld, Albert was Visiting Lecturer at The Victoria & Albert Mu- seum and the Harry M. Wein- rebe Curatorial Fellow at the National Gallery, London, where he contributed to exhi- bitions including Rembrandt: The Late Works and Vermeer and Music: The Art of Love and Leisure. Albert also works as a cultural advisor to several international corporate insti- tutions and private individuals, drawing on his experience in the field and using education to widen understanding of and participation in the study of art history. ASinMalta's lecture programme for 2021-22