Newsletter No 57 December 2019 www.tashh.org.uk

A Year in the Life of TASHH

2019 has been an exceptional and very busy year for TASHH with well-attended monthly lectures, a wonderful tour to Lisbon by 25 of us, more visits than ever, and two attractive Special Interest Days. Your Chairman, Linda Green and Committee members work hard to provide a varied programme of events which they hope will appeal to the membership and, judging by the take-up and feedback afterwards, they have certainly succeeded this year.

It was a privilege to be in the audience for the January lecture on Germany’s Counter Memorials which was judged by some to be the best lecture they had ever attended. The atmosphere in the room was electric, and you could hear a pin drop as Angela Findlay, with her Anglo-German roots, talked honestly and directly about the extraordinary, brave and inspiring works of public art created since the 1980s to keep alive in the individual psyches of the German people, the memories and lessons of one of history’s darkest periods. Until Angela arrived at Kenwood she had no idea that her audience would be composed of so many people with a personal history of the Holocaust, and she was clearly moved by the questions and comments she received at the end of her lecture.

It is interesting for the Committee to read the feedback of members in the surveys completed after each lecture. There is a wide discrepancy of views, as what appeals to some of you does not to others. However the broad consensus is that the 2019 lectures to date have all been judged either excellent or outstanding, which is testament to the skill of our programme secretaries in selecting the very best speakers. Several English artists have featured from Joshua Reynolds, JMW Turner and John Constable in the 18th century, through Edward Burne-Jones in the 19th, to Eric Ravilious, John Piper, the Holland Park Circle and Francis Bacon in the 20th. The audience enjoyed Colin Davies’s introduction to Modern European and USA Architecture, and were very appreciative of the musical interludes played by Lois Oliver to illustrate her sublime lecture on Edward Manet. Our November speaker Dr James Taylor delighted our members with his interesting and highly entertaining talk on Dazzle: Disguise and Disruption in War and Art, a topic new to most of us.

At our Special Interest Days the speakers are afforded three hours to develop their chosen topic. In March, Daniel Snowman gave us a history of Opera, and in November we were introduced to the art of Collecting by the charming and knowledgeable Antiques Roadshow’s Marc Allum.

There were nine visits in 2019 all of which sold out very quickly. Indeed the Foreign Office proved so appealing that a second one was hastily organised by Gordon Rickard. Our visits early in the year to the Reform Club and Trinity House were both fascinating, as was the more recent one to Apsley House and the . The heavy rain at Kew in June did not dampen our enthusiasm for the magnificent and joyous Dale Chihuly glassworks on display there. We had a superb guide whose comprehensive knowledge of her subject was appreciated by us all. The coach outing to Highclere was enjoyed by those who went, although we would have preferred to have had more time at the Castle before driving to our lunch venue. As a regular member of the NT audience, I was intrigued to see all the work carried out behind the scenes to bring productions to life.

I have been fortunate to be able to attend the full programme of 2019 events and am delighted that the year, as well as being such a success artistically, has proved to be a profitable one, which means that we can hold the 2020 subscription fee at its current level and continue to support Magic Lantern. Janice Blackstaffe Treasurer 2

PRESIDENT’S LECTURE in support of Magic Lantern: 15 August 2019 Victoria & Albert at Home

Many thanks to all those TASHH members and their guests who came to hear our President, Julius Bryant deliver a lecture entitled "Victoria & Albert at Home: celebrating their 200th birthday". Julius is now Keeper of Word & Image at Victoria & Albert Museum, responsible for the museum’s collections of prints, drawings, paintings, photographs, designs, digital art, books and archives. However, as Chief Curator and Director of Museums and Collections at English Heritage, he was responsible for the restoration of Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. As a result he was able to give us an outstanding lecture on the origins, design, history and restoration of Osborne House and an insight into the private lives of Victoria and Albert and their large family who loved spending time in their home away from the palaces on the mainland. The history, descriptions and photos of the house were fascinating, especially the Durbar Hall, designed by Lockwood Kipling, with its mixture of Mughal and Hindu decor layered over a very British baronial hall. Members are thanked for their support of this lecture which enabled us to make a further donation of £1,000 to Magic Lantern. Every Arts Society is encouraged to support Young Arts, an initiative launched by Patricia Fay, founder of the Arts Society. When Barbara Reece became our Chairman in 1997, she proposed that we might support Magic Lantern as a Young Arts initiative as their aims fitted in so well with ours. We have supported them ever since. Magic Lantern is an educational charity that uses great works of art to help children observe and explore the world around them. The teachers, one of whom, Frances Rustin, is a member of TASHH, use art as a learning tool across the whole curriculum. Their methods which develop speaking, listening, critical thinking, and observational skills, help children learn to enjoy famous works of art. Their methods are suitable for all age groups, from nursery to Year 13. Some of the initial donations were raised through an annual Christmas raffle and subsequently, under the Chairmanship of Maureen Haltrecht, the Society rasied £625 by publishing a recipe book produced by Colyn Reece and Stuart Burman with recipes tested by Louise Golding. We now raise money by asking members for donations with their annual renewals and we also give the proceeds from our annual special lecture every August. To date, we have donated more than £16,000. In 2019, Magic Lantern was awarded a J M Barrie Members’ award by Action for Children’s Arts for “25 years of helping people to observe and explore the world around them and think creatively and critically through a series of Art History workshops”. Have a look at their website and observe their Director, Matthew Sanders in action. https://magiclanternart.org.uk/ Below is an extract from Matthew’s thank you letter for the £1,000 donation. “A huge thank you to you and your fellow members for the incredible donations we have just received. Your loyal support is wonderful and so helpful to our work.” Ruth Judes Newsletter Editor

Osborne House The Durbar Hall 3

15 August 2019 Visit to the National Theatre: Friday 13 September 2019

What you don’t see when you go to see a performance at the National Theatre!

Our tour on 13th September gave us a glimpse of what happens behind the scenes of this iconic building, inspired by Sir Laurence Olivier and designed by Denys Lasdun. It took thirteen years to complete before it finally opened in 1976. Lasdun based his design on the concept of "architecture as urban landscape" and the material he selected was concrete, which he described as “a beautiful material if it is used in the way its own nature intends it to be used”. As well as giving us an informative insight into the concept and creation of the NT, our guide, Mat Patterson told us about the day-to-day running of the three-theatre complex, the technicalities involved in putting on a production and how the NT, which is a non-profit making organisation, funds itself, as well as giving us some entertaining titbits and anecdotes as to what goes on behind the scenes…we learned that it took 4 hours to transform Benedict Cumberbatch into Frankenstein! We started off in the unique Olivier theatre, which is modelled on the amphitheatre in Epidaurus and seats 1,160 people. The purple colour chosen for the seats was Laurence Olivier’s favourite colour but it also represents heather, reflecting the natural ethos that Olivier and Lasdun wanted to create. We learned about the ‘command’ position on the stage from which actors can see the entire audience. Apparently, even Ian McKellen finds appearing on the Olivier stage a daunting experience! Most fascinating was the description of the Olivier Theatre’s extraordinary huge computer-operated rotary drum in the bowels under the stage. Thanks to its ingenious pulley system, the drum can cope with several scene changes by enabling the stage to be lowered through the floor and spun around. And, because it’s split into two, operators can swap one half for the other without, in theory, the audience suspecting a thing. After a visit to the very different Lyttleton Theatre, we had a tour of the vast area backstage. In total, the skilled craftspeople, technicians, practitioners and artists who create the sets, costumes, make-up and hair, are a large proportion of the NT’s 3,500 staff, alongside the actors, ushers and administrative staff. Those of us who had the privilege of doing this tour with Mat will no doubt see the National Theatre in a very different light the next time we take our seats to watch a production! Terry Clarke Secretary

Access to Kenwood House for lectures

Please note our starting time of 10.45am. Members should be seated by 10.35am.

For security reasons, Kenwood House have stipulated that TASHH members will not be allowed into the House before 10am.

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Visit to Apsley House: 23 October 2019

We were lucky enough to have a dry and sunny day for our visit to Apsley House, the London townhouse of the Dukes of Wellington. It stands at Hyde Park Corner on the site of an old lodge that belonged to the Crown and was subsequently occupied by a tavern called the Hercules Pillars immortalised by Henry Fielding in the “History of Tom Jones, a Foundling.” It was built between 1771 and 1778 for Lord Apsley, subsequently purchased by Richard Wellesley, who because of financial problems sold it to his brother the Duke of Wellington. The Government gave the Duke £600,000 so that he could live in the “style of a Duke”. The architect Benjamin Dean Wyatt was employed to carry out extensive renovations to the Robert Adams- designed house.

The house became known as Number One London because it was the first house passed by travellers from the countryside after they passed through the tollgate. The first part of the extension to be completed was the dining room in 1820. The magnificent silver centre piece comprising 800 pieces of silver was a gift from the Portuguese. The entrance hall is dominated by a large portrait of the Duke. The Piccadilly Room has portraits of heads of state of that time. It is also the only original Adams room remaining. There is a huge Canova sculpture in the stairwell, depicting Napoleon in the classical style. The shape of the banister was built to enhance the sculpture.

Most of the Duke’s painting collection came from the Spanish Royal Collection, rescued from a fleeing Joseph Bonaparte after the Battle of Vitoria in northern Spain. The paintings were later officially given to Wellington by King Ferdinand of Spain. Two hundred were recovered and today 83 still hang at Apsley House. The 7th Duke of Wellington gave the house and it’s most important contents to the nation in 1947. The Wellington Museum Act of 1947 conferred the right of the family to occupy just over half of the house “so long as there is a Duke of Wellington”.

We then visited the Wellington Arch, a Grade 1-listed triumphal arch designed by . It forms the centrepiece of Hyde Park Corner. It was constructed in 1826 at the behest of George IV. It originally stood in front of Buckingham Palace and was moved to its current site in 1882-1883. At that time it supported a huge equestrian statue of the 1st Duke of Wellington by Matthew Cotes Wyatt. A bronze by Adrian Jones depicting the Angel of Peace descending on the Quadriga, the four-horsed chariot of war, replaced it in 1912 and the statue of the Duke was moved to . The Arch was used as a police station before being turned into a museum.

Both our guides were knowledgeable and enthusiastic and entertained us with many anecdotes. Thanks to Tamara Rabin for organising such an interesting outing. Sandra Clifton

Apsley House

The Wellington Arch 5

Special Interest Day: Thursday 7 November 2019 Collecting: The Grand Tour, the Chair, Object Analysis: Marc Allum Marc Allum has been the miscellaneous items expert on Antiques Roadshow since 1998. It is his home that features in the opening credits. All the items - including the Samurai warrior outfit in the garage and the cat - belong to him. He is a compulsive and eclectic collector. Marc's presentation began with the psychology of what makes people collect. Some like souvenirs or mementoes of people, places or events. Others collect items with a particular theme. Marc is interested in collecting just about everything - from bits of broken pottery to quality objects d'art. He went on to discuss the fascinating influences of the fashionable Grand Tour of the mid 18th to mid 19th centuries. Travelling in the 21st century is a fraught and frenetic experience. Stories of lengthy delays, lost luggage and poor service abound. So it was with some incredulity that we heard of the Grand Tour, when travel itself was a leisure activity. "Getting there" was as aesthetically fulfilling as "being there", and the whole trip could last for four years. Before the days of photography and film, the only way to experience the delights of Italy, Greece, Turkey and the Holy Land was to undertake the Grand Tour oneself - to see the sights and bring home objects d'art to display, show off and enjoy. For the aristocracy, the Tour by ship and horse-drawn coach was virtually a rite of passage to complete their education. They were accompanied by an entourage of staff to cater for their every need, and by agents who set up the Tour, helping them to acquire art works and even facilitating the production of copies and fakes to sell to them! The experiences and treasures of the Grand Tour influenced everyday life back home - Corinthian, Doric and Ionic pillars; replica Greek urns and vases on entrances; porticoes on everything from grand houses and libraries to tombstones and even the facade of the British Museum. The BM houses many of the treasures brought home, including a deliberate collection of fakes, as well as the infamous Elgin marbles, the Portland vase and Sir William Hamilton's marvellous collection. London is also home to the huge collection of Sir John Soanes. Without such influences, we would not have the wonderful view of the entrance to Kenwood House from our lecture room albeit through a dirty window! After lunch, Marc illustrated his presentation with items from his personal collection and hosted our own mini Antiques Roadshow as members brought along their items for Marc to assess. Of particular interest were a 15th century Taiwanese fertility figure (£100-£200), an Italian silver figure of Michaelangelo's Moses, probably acquired about 1820 on the Grand Tour (£2-3,000) and a 17th century Chinese bowl censer (for incense) which Marc felt was an important piece and should be valued by an Oriental specialist. Of course, personal treasures and some of the stories they tell are of more than monetary value. And no-one really wants to sell them. But we DO all like to know what our heirlooms or purchases are worth. And don't kid yourself. If that item you bought for a fiver in a charity shop really is worth £50,000, believe me you will sell it, however nice it looks on the hall table! The day was thoroughly enjoyable as Marc proved to be an affable, highly knowledgeable and entertaining speaker. Well done to Linda Stellman for arranging it! Jo Velleman

Marc assessing and valuing items brought by TASHH members 6

Summary of Dates for your Diary

NEXT IN THE LECTURE ROOM Thursday 19 December 2019 Dazzling Dufy: Invitation to a Luminous Feast Mary Alexander Raoul Dufy (1877-1953) was a French Fauvist painter who developed a colourful, decorative style that became fashionable for designs of ceramics and textiles, as well as decorative schemes for public buildings. He is noted for scenes of open-air social events. He was a key player in twentieth century avant garde art, design, literary and musical circles in Paris. He defies categorisation, constantly innovating and experimenting with new materials and effects. Mary Alexander has thirty years' experience as a lecturer, with a BA in History and History of Art and a MA with distinction in History of Art from University College London. Her experience includes public lectures in museums, tutoring for the Open University, visiting lecturer at Christie's Education in London, museum curator at Platt Hall and the Gallery of Costume, Manchester. Now a freelance lecturer to various arts, heritage and antiquarian societies, she also worked in Pentagram design consultancy in London and New York, organising conferences and special events. Author of various articles on design and visual awareness issues, her background combines an unusual blend of academic and visual communications skills.

The lecture will be followed by Christmas drinks and mince pies.

Thursday 16 January 2020 The Sublime in the Everyday: Vermeer and the Delft School of Painting Leslie Primo This lecture will trace Vermeer’s origins, his early training and influences, and how he came to the genre of painting domestic interiors. We will see how Vermeer went from being referred to as ‘the excellent and famous Vermeer’ in 1669 to being declared bankrupt towards the end of his life in 1675. Finally this lecture will look at the late 19th century and 20th century revival of Vermeer that became the cult of Vermeer which endures to this day. Leslie Primo is no stranger to our society having lectured to us in the past on several occasions. He has a degree in Art History and an MA in Renaissance Studies from Birkbeck College. He lectures at the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery; he teaches a variety of art history courses at Imperial College, London, the City Literary and Bishopsgate Institutes in London,

VISITS Tuesday 7 January 11:00 Southwark Cathedral

Tuesday 4 February 11:00 Museum of Brands

Wednesday 4 March 11:00 Hindu Temple in Neasden FLIERS WILL BE EMAILED FOR THESE VISITS

SPECIAL INTEREST DAY 23 April 2020 Cultural Revolution in the Heart of Europe: Gavin Plumley

Please consult our website www.tashh.org.uk for the full extent of our activities and to download forms to book for events.