Biography:

Cindy Polemis is an art historian, independent lecturer and art guide. She has a BA in Modern History from Oxford University and as a mature student she went back to university to study first for a BA and then for a Masters in History of Art at Birkbeck College, London University. Before that she spent many years as a radio producer and presenter for the BBC World Service working in news and current affairs. Since 2016 Cindy has worked as  a lecturer and an official art guide at Tate Britain and Tate Modern. She has also been a trustee at the Museum of the Home, formerly the Geffrye Museum. Cindy has accumulated a wide range of art historical knowledge ranging from 18th European and British art to the contemporary international art scene. She has been an official guide for  Frieze Masters art fair in London. She is particularly keen to draw parallels with art and social history and her lectures are accessible and engaging, drawing out the stories of art and artists which are steeped in human emotions and experiences which we all share.

In this talk which follows on from 'Downton to Gatsby', Andrew shows how the Great Depression and the Second World war had such an extraordinary impact on fashion and jewellery design with the rise of cinema and Hollywood. From the likes of Marlene Dietrich to Grace Kelly, he guides you through the various screen goddesses, how they were portrayed and what they gave to such dazzling effect. He also shows that with the development of advertising, labour saving devices and leisure time, people had more opportunities to enjoy themselves and spend money on the finer things in life, as well as how the political events of the time influenced design and what was worn. He also shows how the Belle Epoque and Art Deco styles did not end at the outbreak of the Second World War, but combined, to flower again with Christian Dior’s 'New Look'.

Theatrical scene design is one of the world's most beautiful, varied and lively art forms. In his talk, Bertie looks at the relationship between actor and audience and how this transformed the space and architecture of theatre throughout the ages. Beginning with the Greeks and their remarkable innovations to pageants, masques, liturgical drama, through the science of perspective, to court theatre. A quick glance at Commedia dell'arte before entering the Elizabethan stage of the Globe and the Fortune and arriving at the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane. From great architects such as Inigo Jones and Frank Matcham, to practitioners such as Granville Barker and Gordon Craig and designers Cecil Beaton and Oliver Messel, Bertie brings to life the magical world of theatre.

The art of Pieter Bruegel the Elder (c. 1525/30-1569) is a byword for the depiction of genre subjects and landscapes. This lecture explores his work and its meanings, from his beginnings in the style of Hieronymus Bosch, to the development of a highly original art that offered an alternative to the Italianate art then in vogue. Working for an elite circle of connoisseurs, at the end of his short life he produced some of his greatest masterpieces, including the Peasant Dance and Peasant Wedding, and the lyrical Months of the Year, which rank amongst the greatest achievements of Netherlandish painting.