The Arts Society Cranleigh has released its programme for November 2022 and January 2023

On Saturday 12th November, A SPECIAL INTEREST MORNING

This event consists of two talks with Rachel Kolsky (a prize-winning London Blue Badge Tourist Guide)

Registration is at 9.30am, with the morning finishing at 12.30pm (including a coffee break at 11am.

Tickets are £17.50 with non-members welcome to attend.

‘A Tonic for the Nation’: The Festival of Britain 1951

Exciting and futuristic, the Festival of Britain brought fun and colour to post-war austerity London with its Skylon, Dome of Discovery, Battersea Pleasure Gardens, an iconic logo and specially commissioned artworks from emerging artists and sculptors, yet to be household names. Fabulous memories remain particularly at the Royal Festival Hall, the South Bank and the Lansbury Housing Estate in Poplar.

Wonderful Waterloo

Following its amazing early 20th century transformation, Waterloo was once described as being for ‘a better class of commuter’ and this talk provides an opportunity to hear the stories behind not one but seven stations and from one, The Station of the Dead, there were no return journeys!

Discover the hidden histories of the News Cinema, TV Lounge and luxury restaurants, relive iconic film locations and discover artworks and memorials linked to the Festival of Britain, the Cans Festival and military campaigns including the iconic Victory Arch.

On Wednesday 23rd November – THE DOWAGER EMPRESS CIXI – RULING FROM BEHIND THE YELLOW SCREEN with David Rosier

This talk will explore the events that led to her confirmation as Dowager empress CIXI in 1861. It will trace the distinct cycles of CIXI’s power, as Emperors came and went, whilst the dowager Empress moved periodically from a position of influence to full authority and then into times of enforced retirement.

It looks beyond CIXI’s desire to force China into the modern world, gaining an insight into her life within her beloved Summer Palace: a focus on her passion for painting, embroidery, fashion design and the extensive gardens. A location where CIXI forged some extraordinarily close relationships with leading western women.

There is no meeting in December.

Wednesday 25th January 2023 – DAME LAURA KNIGHT – with Rosalind Whyte

In 1936, Dame Laura Knight became the first woman to be elected as a full member of the Royal Academy of Art in London. She was the only woman to be given War Commissions in both the First and Second World Wars and the only British artist to cover the Nuremberg Trials of 1946.

This lecture provides an overview of her fascinating career and some of the remarkable achievements of her long life.

Non-members are welcome to join us at a talk as a guest. No commitment, but a donation is appreciated.

Please contact: membership@theartssocietycranleigh.org or see our website: theartssocietycranleigh.org