Welsh Art and Wales as an artistic destination are perhaps not subjects which have been given serious attention in the past.   Welsh artists are often considered to be, at best, minor figures within the wider canon of British Art.

This lecture seeks to enlighten audiences as to the key role Welsh artists have played, commencing with the father of British landscape art, Richard Wilson.  We will consider the enduring influence of the Welsh landscape in the emerging Romantic period, as captured by JMW Turner, through the later 19th century with the establishment of the Betws y Coed artists' colony and then consider the artists of the 20th century who offered a very different interpretation to the vision of the 'Land of my Fathers'.

A broad look at Chinese folk prints, including New Year pictures, gate guardians, talismans, folk gods and nineteenth-century propaganda.  The talk explores how prints are made and the history of Chinese printing, including interviews with surviving craftsmen.   It also discusses the iconography of "rebus" prints, introduces Chinese legends, literature and fables, touches on folk religion and shows how prints sometimes recorded social history and current events.  The lecture is illustrated with around forty prints from the lecturer's own collection, plus maps to show where the printing centres were located.

The finest private art collection ever bequeathed to a nation, the Wallace Collection is a rich and varied treasure trove that is relatively little-known, despite being a short walk from London's Oxford Street.  Paintings by Titian, Rembrandt, Rubens, Hals and Velazquez sit alongside Sevres porcelain, French eighteenth century furniture and princely armour.

This lecture will relate the history of the collectors, the wealthy and eccentric Hertford family, from the scandalous third Marquess to Sir Richard Wallace, illegitimate son of the fourth Marquess.  We will trace the stories behind the exhibits, some of which were owned by exotic figures such as Marie Antoinette and Madame de Pompadour.