The History of the Portrait: Renaissance to Contemporary
Part One of a Five Session Short Course
Tuesday 5 May 2015 11am - 12.30pm
Reynolds Room, Burlington House.
£245
Friends of the RA book first
The history of the portrait in Western art is really the history of changing ideas of what it means to be human. This course, led by art historian Ben Street, will examine the scope of the portrait as a genre, from its Renaissance appearance within religious settings, to its gradual independence and development as a genre in its own right.
Tue 5 May, Thur 7 May, Tue 12 May, Thur 14 May and Thur 21 May.
11am - 12.30pm each day.
In this five part lecture series we will learn that the history of the portrait forms a kind of mirror onto our mutating sense of self. By following the course of this shape-shifting genre – from reverence to self-aggrandisement, from self-analysis to satire – the viewer can gain a special insight into the shifting definitions of personhood across history.
The course begins with Renaissance portraiture, examining its emergence in religious painting and independence as a genre, including the rise of the self-portrait. We then look at 17th century portraiture in Holland, Spain, Italy and England: royal, personal and propagandist. The next session examines portraiture of the Enlightenment and Romantic periods across Europe, the groundwork for the next session: the rise of the modern portrait. Starting in the mid-19th century, this will work through to the mid-20th. The final session will pick up the thread into the later 20th century and contemporary art, finding possible links across history that reveal essential truths about the nature of the portrait.
Tutor Ben Street is a freelance art historian, lecturer and writer. He lectures for the National Gallery, Tate, Dulwich Picture Gallery, Christie’s Education, Sotheby’s Institute of Art and NADFAS. His writing has been published in numerous museum and gallery catalogues across Europe and the USA, including the RA.
Tea and coffee will be provided.
This is part of a series and cannot be booked individually.