Wells

Art Appreciation

Leaders Jenny
Meeting Pattern 1st Monday of each month at 2.30pm.
VenueDenning Room, Union Street, Wells

We meet in the Denning Room in Union Street, where we watch videos on art history. We have a break for refreshments when we informally discuss what we have been watching. If you are interested in joining us in the Denning Room, please contact me by clicking on the pigeon icon on this page to send a message, as there may be a waiting list.

We are just starting to watch the Great Courses DVD on Post-Impressionism: The Beginnings of Modern Art. These 24 lectures will cover the artists Paul Cézanne, Georges Seurat, Vincent van Gogh, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Paul Gauguin and Gustav Klimt, amongst others, plus Japanese influence.

We were previously watching Simon Schama's The Power of Art: covering the artists Caravaggio; Bernini; Rembrandt; David; Turner; Van Gogh; Picasso; Rothko. The series "recounts the story of eight moments of high drama in the making of eight artistic masterpieces".

We have also been looking at a series we began watching when we were holding Zoom meetings during lockdown: the Cocktails with a Curator, produced by the Frick Collection in New York. The basic format features one of the curators mixing a cocktail, and then talking about it and the painting, for about 20 minutes.

We have watched:
Jean-Siméon Chardin's 'Still Life with Plums'
Vermeer's 'Officer and Laughing Girl'
Monet's 'Vetheuil in Winter'
Turner's 'Harbor of Dieppe'
Constable's 'The White Horse'
Rembrandt's 'Polish Rider'and 'Self-portrait'
Holbein's 'Sir Thomas More'
Guardi's 'Regatta in Venice' and 'View of Cannaregio Canal in Venice'
Bruegel the Elder's 'Three Soldiers'
Van Dyck's 'Sir John Suckling'
Velázquez's 'King Philip'
Whistler's 'Mrs. Frances Leyland'
Titian's 'Aretino'
Ingres's 'Comtesse d'Haussonville'
Piero della Francesca's 'St. John the Evangelist'
Lawrence's 'Lady Peel'
Vermeer's 'Mistress and Maid'
Reynolds’s 'Selina, Lady Skipwith'
Stubbs's 'Portrait of Warren Hastings'
Gainsborough's 'Grace Dalrymple Elliott'
Romney's 'Lady Hamilton as 'Nature'
David’s 'Comtesse Daru'
Beechey's 'Elizabeth Sophia Baillie'
Whistler’s 'Lady Meux'
Whistler’s 'Comte Robert de Montesquiou-Fezensac'
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We have also watched some of the BBC series Civilisations: Masterworks of beauty and ingenuity. Civilisations was a series (made in 2018) "spanning 31 countries on six continents, and covering more than 500 works of art. Presenters Simon Schama, Mary Beard and David Olusoga explored humanity's desire to create."

1. Second Moment of Creation (03-10-22)
A look at the formative role art and imagination have played in the forging of humanity.

2. How Do We Look? (07-11-22)
Professor Mary Beard explored images of the human body in ancient art.

3. Picturing Paradise (12-12-22)
Simon Schama explored one of our deepest artistic urges - the depiction of nature.

4. The Eye of Faith (09-01-23)
Professor Mary Beard broached the controversial topic of religion and art.

In the past we have watched one of the Great Courses DVDs called "How to Look at and Understand Great Art". A synopsis of the "tools" the lecturer suggested for looking at works of art is available here on the website, and was circulated to members.

Click on a picture below to see it full-size with more details.

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Appreciating Literature Art Appreciation
Astronomy & Cosmology Group Badminton
Bird Watching Book Group 2
Cards for Pleasure Chemistry - Its Effect on Everyday Life
Chess Clock Repairs
Conversational French Current Affairs
Current Affairs 2 Cycling
Digital Photography Easy Rides Cycling Group
En Français Environmental Issues
Geology German Conversation
History (Eastern Civilisation) Italian Conversation
Jazz, Swing & Crooners Local History
Making Music MOTO (Members On Their Own)
Music Appreciation New Science
Opera Group Out & About
Painting for Pleasure Petanque 1
Petanque 2 Play Reading
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Saturday Lunch Group Shakespeare Group
Spanish Conversation Strollers
Sunday Lunch Group Table Tennis
Tai Chi Theatre Group
Visiting Somerset Churches Walking Group 1
Walking Group 2 Wildflower Walks
Wine Appreciation