- Tuesday, 4 February 2025
- Tuesday, 11 February 2025
- Tuesday, 25 February 2025
- Tuesday, 4 March 2025
- Tuesday, 11 March 2025
- Tuesday, 18 March 2025
- Tuesday, 25 March 2025
About
Scientists and artists have always tried to make sense of the world, and to constantly ask the question: why?
In this series of events, we too will ask questions and prompt debates. Join art historian Dr Matthew Morgan as he talks about National Gallery paintings that stand at the intersection of science and art and then take part in a live discussion, so that you too will have a chance to ask the question: why?
This is a walking tour throughout the Gallery and headsets will be provided. Please meet at the Getty Desk in Annenberg Court to register for the event.
Astronomy and astrology
In his magisterial double portrait, The Ambassadors, Hans Holbein, included a number of astrological instruments. For Holbein, the observable celestial heaven and the conceptual theological heaven, were linked. Join us as we explore how a scientific understanding of the stars was an important element in Holbein's painting and discuss what we think about our modern relationship to the planets and the vastness of space.
Questions to think about in advance:
- Are science and art separate?
- What do you think about the possibility of humans on Mars?
- Should there be art in space?
Medicine
In this session we will discuss one of the most heartrending and brutal works in Hogarth's Marriage A La Mode: 3, The Inspection. A man and a young girl are in an apothecary's buying medicine. Hogarth is clear that the 'cure' is false, and the illness they want to cure comes from a dissolute life. What does Hogarth have to say about medicines and healthy lives? What do we think about the huge increase in the number of medicines in the contemporary world? Are they an advantage or a curse, and why are some people so distrustful of them?
Questions to think about in advance:
- Is there a tendency to over-medicalise conditions, obesity for example?
- Is it possible to change our lifestyles through willpower or do we need medicines to help us?
- Can art influence the ways we think about the medicines we take?
Geology
Pierre Mignard's fascinating portrait of the Marquise de Seignelay and Two of her Sons shows her posing on the coast with a smoking volcano in the background. Volcanoes have long been depicted as symbols of uncontrollable power and destruction and, when this painting was made, volcanoes were inexplicable. In this session we will discuss our relationship with the natural world. Does knowing more about it change our relationship with our environment, or are we just as powerless now as we were then?
Questions to think about in advance:
- Have you ever been frightened by a natural phenomenon such as a volcano, storm or even an animal?
- Does being able to understand or explain something make it less frightening or more frightening?
- Are there man-made things that are equally frightening or inexplicable?
Science and magic
Joseph Wright 'of Derby's' painting of An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump has been described as the quintessential painting of the Enlightenment. We see a group of people reacting in different ways to a scientific demonstration. These reactions are recognisable as very modern responses to science and what it might mean to our way of life. In this session we will explore Wright's painting and ask, what do we think about the ways in which science and technology are changing our lives?
Questions to think about in advance:
- Can you think of a technological or scientific advance that has improved your life?
- Should there be a moral element to science or is it completely neutral?
- Who benefits from science and technology?
International trade and silk weaving
Ingres's portrait of Madame Moitessier presents us with a glamorous, prosperous lady. Her dress is made from sumptuous Lyon silk; the very height of fashion when the portrait was completed. In this session we discuss Madame Moitessier's clothes, the source of her fortune and the rapid rise in international commerce and finance. We will also discuss the tensions between money and artistic creativity.
Questions to think about in advance:
- Should we care about the source of a patron's fortunes when appreciating a work of art?
- Are art and fashion always the playthings of the wealthy?
- Do we own anything that displays our wealth?
Colour theory
The Impressionists were heirs to many decades of theorising about the best way to paint the world in which we live. However, artists have always embraced new technologies that help them to realise their visions. In this session we will discuss how scientific and technological advances helped artists to work out of doors and produce their vibrant and colorful works. What do we think about some of the uses of technology in today's works of art?
Questions to think about in advance:
- Do you think that there is more colour in our lives today than there was 20 years ago?
- Do you understand non-fungible tokens (NFTs)?
- Is there any contemporary art medium that you think is better than oil on canvas?
Commercialisation, modernity and urbanisation
In this final session we are going to consider Seurat's Bathers at Asnières and how it captures one of the defining features of Modernism: isolation. For Seurat, this came about from rapid urbanisation and industrialisation. Today it is technology that is accused of separating us from each other. Can art offer an alternative to isolation and if so, how?
Questions to think about in advance:
- Does the internet make for more or less communication?
- What might have changed since Seurat's time - or is his painting as relevant today as it was when he painted it?
- Is there a work of art (old or new) that makes you think about how people can connect with each other?
Your host
Dr Matthew Morgan is a freelance art historian, educator and museum professional. He has been the Museum Director of Turner's House, and he is also an Associate Lecturer at Birkbeck, University of London. He has worked in the heritage sector for 10 years, including at the Royal Collection, the National Gallery and the Wallace Collection. Prior to that he was a Director in Christie’s Valuation Department. He has contributed to TV documentaries, podcasts, radio shows and has lectured widely across the country and made a series of short films which can be seen on YouTube.
The innovation series
- Tuesday, 4 February 2025
- Tuesday, 11 February 2025
- Tuesday, 25 February 2025
- Tuesday, 4 March 2025
- Tuesday, 11 March 2025
- Tuesday, 18 March 2025
- Tuesday, 25 March 2025
Tickets
Members: £20
This is a Members' exclusive event. Please show your membership card and ticket to gain entry to the event.
Please meet at the Getty Desk located in Annenberg Court for registration and directions to the event.
