Douglas Skeggs to Give Talk on 'Velazquez – the Great Magician of Art'
The Arts Society Chiswick's April Lecture
Velazquez's Waterseller of Seville (1620)
April 3, 2023
This month’s lecture hosted by The Arts Society Chiswick will be on the subject ‘Velazquez – the Great Magician of Art’ and be given by Douglas Skeggs.
It takes place at 8:00pm on Thursday 13 April 2023 at POSK on King Street.
Although not always acknowledged nowadays, come and hear why 17th century Spanish artist Velazquez is one of the most influential painters in the history of art. Join Douglas Skeggs.
Douglas Skeggs read Fine Art at Magdalene College Cambridge and has been a lecturer on paintings since 1980. In that time, he has given over 8000 talks to universities, colleges and art societies. He was the director of The New Academy of Art Studies for three years and is presently a regular lecturer at The Study Center, Christie's course 'The History of Art Studies' and other London courses. Among his more improbable venues for lectures are the bar on the QE2, MI5 headquarters, the Captain's Room at Lloyds, and an aircraft hangar in a German NATO base. Overseas he has lectured in Belgium, France, Germany and Spain, and has taken numerous tours around Europe.
He has written and presented various TV documentaries, notably the Omnibus programme on Whistler and the exhibition video on William Morris. Three one-man exhibitions of his paintings have been held in England and Switzerland. He has published five novels which have been translated into 8 foreign languages, and his book on Monet, River of Light, has sold 30,000 copies in England, America and France.
You will find out why the cool elegance of Velazquez’s style, his ability to discover a sense of dignity and humanity in even the simplest of subjects, coupled with his breathtakingly daring treatment of the paint was widely admired by generations of artists from Whistler to Picasso, who famously described him as “The Great Magician of Art”.
Olivia Freeman, Chair, The Arts Society Chiswick said, “We have a very experienced lecturer this month and look forward to welcoming both members and guests to enjoy this revealing lecture,“
The doors will open at 7pm as will the private bar. Non-members are welcome to attend by paying £10 on the door.
Membership of the Arts Society Chiswick includes 10 expert lectures on the second Thursday of every month (except August and December) and the opportunity to participate in tours, visits, social events and Special Interest Days. For more information see the society's web site.
The Arts Society Chiswick brings people together through a shared curiosity for the arts, to create opportunities for everyone to be part of a diverse community in which they can enjoy, learn about, participate in, and preserve the Arts and Cultural Heritage.
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