Evening Talks at the Holburne

Wednesday 1 February 2012

Adam Nicolson: The Gentry
Prize-winning author and presenter Adam Nicolson talks about his critically acclaimed new book on the English gentry. The Gentry tells the stories of fourteen families, from the medieval gung-ho of the Plumpton family to the high-seas adventures of the Lascelles in the 18th-century, to more modern examples. Through their intimate, passionate and powerful sagas Nicolson provides an engaging alternative history of England.
Ticket: £10/£8 concs
Time: 7.30pm

Friday 17 February 2012

Tradition and Transformation in Contemporary Still Life Photography
In this evening event associated with Art of Arrangement, photographer, critic and art historian Lucy Soutter, from the Royal College of Art, will discuss the persistence and dynamic transformation of photographic still life. Using examples from the exhibition as well as from very recent work, Soutter will explore some of the different possibilities for still life in contemporary practice.
Ticket: £10/£8 concs
Time: 7.30pm

Thursday 29 March 2012

Bath in Fashion

The Art of Shoes: Manolo Blahnik in conversation with Iain R Webb
Manolo Blahnik is one of the world’s most influential and celebrated footwear designers, a true artisan whose shoes have been described as ‘works of art’. The award-winning designer, with a passion for cinema, literature and art, is idolised by women the world over. He was recently voted one of Britain’s coolest brands. Iain R Webb is a respected fashion writer who has contributed to The Times, Harpers Bazaar, Elle and many more. He is a Professor of Fashion at the Royal College of Art and Central Saint Martins. This is a rare opportunity to hear Manolo Blahnik’s story and views on life, shoes and Bath, the city he calls home.
Ticket: £20 from the Holburne Tel 01225 388569, Visit bathinfashion.co.uk or call 0844 847 5256
Time: 7.30pm

Café open from 6.30pm and after the talk for book signing

Friday 30 March 2012

From Georgiana to Boy George Stephen Jones in conversation with Sarah Mower
History is stitched into every seam of milliner Stephen Jones’ hats and this talk will reveal the inspiration for his work. Jones has had a passion for museums ever since he first studied at St Martins School of Art. His hats can be inspired by a historical discovery or imagined narrative prompted by an artifact, painting or photograph. Designs have been drawn from relics of the Renaissance to cluttered Victoriana, the glamour of the 1930s and the Swinging Sixties. The Georgian era is a period he returns to again and again, especially the Regency. Jones is entranced by the elegance of neo-classical architecture, the Romantic poets, fluttering plumes, bonnets and turbans.

Sarah Mower MBE, was born and raised in Bath and is now a contributing editor to American Vogue as well as writing fashion columns for many national newspapers. She has recently been appointed Ambassador for Emerging Talent by the British Fashion Council and is a visiting professor for Central Saint Martins College of Art.
Ticket: £15 from the Holburne Tel 01225 388569, Visit bathinfashion.co.uk or call 0844 847 5256
Time: 4pm

The Garden Café will be open for tea and cakes before the talk

Wednesday 18 April 2012

Jenny Uglow: Politics and Poetry
In the late 1790s, when light-hearted views of Bath appeared in Rowlandson's cartoons and Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey, the town's elegant crescents were also an unlikely haven for radicals. Jenny Uglow looks at these passionately political circles and at the poetry related to them in the work of Coleridge, Wordsworth, Lamb, Southey and others - the birth of a new movement.
Ticket: £10/£8 concs
Time: 7.30pm