Let There Be Light by Alexandra Drysdale

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The next Chiswick Decorative & Fine Arts Society talk

Alexandra Drysdale is to give the next talk in the series present by the Chiswick Decorative and Fine Arts Society entitled 'Let There Be Light. She is an art historian and a professional artist specialising in painting, sculpture and performance. Her lectures combine art historical knowledge with personal expertise in aesthetics and artistic techniques.

Art from all periods, including examples of her own work, is examined from an artist's point of view. This entails a perceptive analysis of a painting's structure, its meaning, and its relationship to the history of art. She puts a particular emphasis on studying the symbolic language of the imagination.

Over 4.6 billion years ago a star was born and our sun started to shine. Soon after this the Earth and our other planets were formed and light began its eight minute flight to Earth. Science and art have moved forward together in the quest to understand light as can be seen in representations of rainbows or contemporary Black Holes.

For artists light can express emotions, from El Greco’s light of spiritual ecstasy to the dangerous darkness of Caravaggio, from Turner’s sublime sunlight to Samuel Palmer’s melancholy moonlight. Australian Impressionism uses a different colour palette to European Impressionism.

Stonehenge was built to worship the sun, and today James Turrell makes light temples in art galleries and Dan Flavin makes altarpieces from fluorescent tubes.

The lecture starts at 8pm on Thursday 11 May in the Malinova Room at The Polish Centre (POSK), 238-246 King Street, Hammersmith, W6 0RF. All are welcome and you are encouraged to arrive early to join the rest of the audience for a pre-lecture drink. Tickets cost £8 for non-members.

May 11, 2017