London Events

View: Simmons and Simmons

Thursday 8 May

Portland Gallery presents a major exhibition of oil paintings, watercolours and drawings by the Royal Academician Mary Fedden, who is well known for her playful creativity and striking use of colour. This retrospective, showing around 80 pieces, looks at her work over the last six decades. As well as still lifes, for which she is particularly famous, the exhibition includes a number of landscapes, many with figures or animals, religious paintings and fantasy pictures. Christopher Andreae, author of Mary Fedden: Enigmas and Variations, will give a talk, together with Emily Jenkinson, curator of this show.

Booking information: Please call 0870 050 3688

Date: Thursday 8 May, Doors 6.30pm, Talk 7.00pm
Address: 8 Bennet Street, London SW1
Tickets: £15, includes a glass of wine

Visit: Spencer House

Sunday 18 May

Join a private tour of Spencer House. Built in 1756–66 for John, Est Earl Spencer, it was one of the most ambitious town houses created in London and is the city's only great 18th-century private palace to survive intact. The house was recently restored, and key pieces of furniture returned to their original locations, along with paintings in the State Rooms borrowed from the Royal Collection, the Royal Academy and Tate.

Booking information: Please call 0870 050 3688

Date: Sunday 18 May, 10.15am
Address: 27 St James's Place, London SW1
Tickets: £14

Talk: Restoration at St Paul's

Thursday 22 May

Throughout its history, St Paul’s Cathedral has frequently needed restoration. This talk, by Derek Keene, Leverhulme Professor of Comparative Metropolitan History at the University of London, looks at the political and cultural context of theses restorations.
Opinions on the structural stability of the present cathedral have changed in dramatic ways. There have also been different views on its internal decoration, many of them based on the perception that Wren’s work was ‘unfinished’. Successive attempts to remedy this have left a legacy of uncompleted and conflicting schemes, the aesthetic resolution of which is one of the principal challenges of the recent programme of restoration.

Booking information: Please call 0870 050 3688

Date: Thursday 22 May, 2.30pm
Address: Wallace Collection, Manchester Square, London W1
Tickets: £10

Talk: Wall Painting Conservation

Thursday 12 June

In recent years wall painting conservation has become increasingly international and scientific, involving collaboration between different countries and different kinds of specialist.

From cave paintings in China to medieval paintings in English churches, this talk by David Park, Director of Conservation of Wall Painting at the Courtauld Institute of Art, provides an insight into the enormous challenges facing conservators at the beginning of the 21st century.

Booking information: Please call 0870 050 3688

Date: Thursday 12 June, 2.30pm
Address: Wallace Collection, Manchester Square, London W1
Tickets: £10

Talk and View: The Grosvenor House Art and Antiques Fair

Monday 16 June

This most prestigous of fairs brings together amazing works of art from around the world.Whether you love the exquisite craftsmanship of the 18th century, or the challenging minimalism of the modern age, the fair will delight.We meet for coffee in a private room, where Jeremy Garfield-Davies from Ronald Phillips Ltd, whose talk for The Art Fund was greatly enjoyed last year, will give a slide presentation on highlights of this year's fair. Afterwards members may continue viewing the fair independently. Please note that the fair is open 16 June, 11 am – 8 pm. Tickets may be used for readmission at any time on the day.

Booking information: Please call 0870 050 3688

Date: Thursday 12 June, 6.00pm
Address: Grosveor House, Park Lane, London W1
Tickets: £23, includes tea/coffee plus fair handbook

Visit: The Old Vic and Young Vic Theatres

Tuesday 17 June and Friday 20 June 2008

A day at the theatre with no play. We commence with a guided tour of the Old Vic Theatre, where we will be told its fascinating history and place in the annals of Thespian legends, and given an outline of its challenging roll under the exciting Artistic Directorship of Kevin Spacey.

A delicious three-course lunch will be served nearby (coffee is included but drinks are extra), after which the Young Vic is giving us a special tour, showing off its recent exciting renovations and outlining its extensive cultural policy.

As both are working theatres, some areas may not be available to us on the day, and for some of us the visits will be taken in reverse order.

Booking information: Tickets £44.50. Please make a cheque payable to The Art Fund Daytime Committee, enclose a SAE and forward to: Mr Ralph Bowmaker, 12 Holly Village, London N6 6QJ

Date: Tuesday 17 June and Friday 20 June 2008
Address: The Old Vic, The Cut, London SE1 8NB
Tickets: £44.50

Talk: How Manuscripts Were Made and How Manuscripts Are Conserved

Tuesday 29 July

Gold, parchment, quills, cinnabar, orpiment, ultramarine – these materials conjure up the creation of mediæval manuscripts. But how were they made? Patricia Lovett - a scribe, illuminator and designer, will demonstrate how tissue-thin leaf gold was added to the pages, and how the miniatures were painted. She will also show how a quill is cut and how the words were written. David Jacobs, Senior Conservator at the British Library, will follow Patricia's session with a talk on the conservation of Eastern Manuscripts.

Booking information: Please call 0870 050 3688

Date: Tuesday 29 July, 2.30pm
Address: British Library Conference Centre, 96 Euston Road, London NW1
Tickets: £25