There is no doubt that Dulwich and its leafy surroundings are full of art lovers, maybe because it is the home of one of the world’s finest art galleries?
Bell House
Exhibitions at Dulwich Picture Gallery draw large crowds and their lectures likewise. Now as the Gallery has decided to concentrate on lectures that are connected to their current exhibitions, a natural vacuum appeared and some of the Friends of the Gallery kept hearing how much the In Town lectures would be missed by a large number of visitors.
Barbara Richardson, a former Chairman of Friends of the Gallery and other local friends of hers decided that here was an opportunity to fill that vacuum as well as helping local charities. “The In Town lectures were extremely popular and the decision to stop them made a lot of people very upset because it gave a proper insight into the exhibitions they covered. We found a perfect venue for the talks and now we also contribute to local charities,” says Barbara Richardson.
Amedeo Modigliani (1884–1920) Nude 1917 Private Collection
The series of lectures will be held in the beautiful Bell House, in College Road in the heart of Dulwich. The house itself is worth a lecture. It was built in 1767 for the former Lord Mayor of London. It gets its name from the fine bell tower, the bells of which rang as soon as a fire broke out in its vicinity. As did the bells from Dulwich College Chapel. The link between the two was strengthened in 1926 when it became the official residence of the Master of the College. During the second world war the Master moved to a smaller house and in 1947 it was turned into a junior boarding house. In 1993 it was sold to a private owner and in 2016 it was bought by an educational charity as a centre for education and training specialising in dyslexic students.
The house has undergone renovation and there is still work to be done but the lecture theatre which can seat sixty will be the venue for an exciting series of lectures. The first will take place on 15 March and the topic is the painter Modigliani. The present exhibition as Tate Modern has garnered much praise
from the art critics. The lecturer will be Rosalind Whyte, who has a Masters from Birkbeck College and a Masters degree in Art History from Goldsmiths’ College. She is a very popular lecturer and guide at Tate and she also lectures at art societies and specialist cruises.
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) The Dream (Le Rêve) 1932 Private Collection
Modigliani had a brief and turbulent life and his style of painting I instantly recognisable and he has become one of the best loved artists of the 20th century. Rosalind Whyte will talk about his life and how it affected his art including the many paintings that have never been seen in this country before.
Rosalind Whyte will also give the second lecture on 26th April which will center on another of the greats of the last century; Picasso. Tate Modern’s upcoming exhibition will focus on his work from the early 1930’s when he was at the height of his artistic powers.
For anyone interested in art these informative talks will give a new and fresh insight into two of the most influential artists of the 1900s and in a setting that could not be more inspiring. Not only that, the proceeds of the talks will be shared by the educational trust and the other half will go to different local charities like St. Christopher’s Hospice, Homestart Southwark, Link Age Southwark and the Time Bank.
Tickets for these two events can be purchased by clicking on the links. For Modigliani and for Picasso
One Comment
You seem to have sold out of tickets for Modigliani and Picasso talks very quickly! I was hoping for two tickets for each.