Norman Rockwell was a celebrated and prolific 20th-century painter and illustrator whose work reached a larger audience than almost any other artist in history.  As a master visual narrator, he created 323 iconic covers for The Saturday Evening Post, capturing the essence of American life.  Though he passed away in 1978, Rockwell’s work retains a massive popular appeal, with his original paintings now commanding millions of dollars.  Celebrated for telling whimsical, heartwarming stories that invariably make us smile, he remains affectionately known as "the storyteller with a brush."

John Ericson was formerly a lecturer at the University of Bath, where he served as Director of Studies in the School of Education with responsibility for the professional development of teachers.  He has worked extensively overseas as an international educational consultant, presenting at conferences worldwide.  Over the last decade, John has become a highly popular speaker on the Arts Society circuit across the UK and Europe, and is a frequent guest lecturer for societies in Australia and New Zealand.

Image; SaturdayEveningPost27Sep1924 

• It is necessary to always BOOK IN ADVANCE a place to attend a lecture.  Our venue has a fixed capacity which we are unable to exceed.  Arrival at a lecture without booking may mean that we are unable to allow you to attend. 
• It is VITAL that all members attending register their arrival at the venue.  A comprehensive list is required in the event of a fire.
• A member has ONE free guest pass to use each lecture season.  If you would like to bring a guest, you must PRE BOOK a place.  Once you have used your free pass you are able to bring other guests for a fee of £10.  A guest may only attend as such on two occasions.  We would be happy to offer membership to any guest should they wish to join having "tried us out".
• Recording of a lecture in any form - video or photographs  - is forbidden.  All of our lecturers are Arts Society Accredited and their desire to protect their intellectual property will be respected by The Arts Society Westminster.

The Elizabethan era was far more than a period of stylistic change; it was the crucible that transformed medieval dwellings into the blueprint for the modern home.  This lecture explores the architectural spectrum of the age—from modest cottages and wealthy merchants' townhouses to sprawling country estates and the queen’s own royal residences.

Beyond the introduction of modern comforts like brick chimneys, grand open staircases, and glass windows, these buildings tell a deeper story of a society in upheaval.  Dr. Foyle deciphers the hidden symbolism built into these structures, revealing how they were shaped by massive historical shifts: the dissolution of the monasteries, rapid urbanization, and England's first glimpses of a wider global world.

Dr. Jonathan Foyle is an architectural historian and broadcaster.  A former Curator of Historic Royal Palaces (including Hampton Court) and Chief Executive of the World Monuments Fund Britain, Jonathan currently lectures at the University of Bath and writes for the FT Weekend. 

To the public, he is best known for presenting the Broadcast Award-winning BBC2 series Climbing Great Buildings, as well as his regular contributions to Channel 4’s Time Team and Channel 5’s Secrets of the Royal Palaces.  His lectures for The Arts Society focus on original, fresh analyses of art and architecture with a special emphasis on unlocking the rich symbolism hidden within the built world.

Image provided by lecturer.

Please note; 

• It is necessary to always BOOK IN ADVANCE a place to attend a lecture.  Our venue has a fixed capacity which we are unable to exceed.  Arrival at a lecture without booking may mean that we are unable to allow you to attend. 
• It is VITAL that all members attending register their arrival at the venue.  A comprehensive list is required in the event of a fire.
• A member has ONE free guest pass to use each lecture season.  If you would like to bring a guest, you must PRE BOOK a place.  Once you have used your free pass you are able to bring other guests for a fee of £10.  A guest may only attend as such on two occasions.  We would be happy to offer membership to any guest should they wish to join having "tried us out".
• Recording of a lecture in any form - video or photographs  - is forbidden.  All of our lecturers are Arts Society Accredited and their desire to protect their intellectual property will be respected by The Arts Society Westminster.

What did ten-year-old boys like the young Botticelli or the young Rubens learn during their apprenticeships to become the masters we know today?  This lecture explores the intense training and hard work that went into making a painting.  By using the evidence within the artworks themselves, we will uncover daily life inside the historical studio—from the bitter cold and darkness of winter to the precarious scaffolding needed for monumental canvases.  Finally, the session examines the unique, often hidden challenges faced by young women who aspired to become artists in a male-dominated world.

Chantal Brotherton-Ratcliffe holds an MA in History of Art from the University of Edinburgh and a PhD from the Warburg Institute, University of London.  With four decades of teaching experience, she has been a lecturer at Sotheby's Institute of Art since 1989.  She also works as an independent lecturer for premier London institutions, including the National Gallery and the Wallace Collection.  Additionally trained as a paintings conservator, Chantal uniquely bridges art history and material science, bringing a deep practical understanding of the physical creation and preservation of art to her lectures and study sessions.

Image; Painter in His Studio by Adriaen van Ostade, print at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Please note; 

• It is necessary to always BOOK IN ADVANCE a place to attend a lecture.  Our venue has a fixed capacity which we are unable to exceed.  Arrival at a lecture without booking may mean that we are unable to allow you to attend. 
• It is VITAL that all members attending register their arrival at the venue.  A comprehensive list is required in the event of a fire.
• A member has ONE free guest pass to use each lecture season.  If you would like to bring a guest, you must PRE BOOK a place.  Once you have used your free pass you are able to bring other guests for a fee of £10.  A guest may only attend as such on two occasions.  We would be happy to offer membership to any guest should they wish to join having "tried us out".
• Recording of a lecture in any form - video or photographs  - is forbidden.  All of our lecturers are Arts Society Accredited and their desire to protect their intellectual property will be respected by The Arts Society Westminster.

Rembrandt’s 1642 masterpiece, The Night Watch, stands as an undisputed icon of the Dutch Golden Age.  But what makes this monumental work so revolutionary?  Rather than delivering a stiff, traditional group portrait, Rembrandt completely reimagined the genre by capturing his subjects in dynamic, theatrical motion.

This lecture explores the fascinating history behind its civic militia commission, its survival over the centuries, and the hidden symbolism locked within the frame—from the identity of the illuminated young girl to the enigmatic dead chicken at her waist.  Ultimately, we will examine how this single, groundbreaking canvas reflects the triumphs of a rapidly changing 17th-century Dutch society.

Hilary Williams is an Art History Education Officer at the British Museum, having formerly served as a curator and Print Room Superintendent.  A 17th-century art specialist who has published on Rembrandt, she lectures frequently for the British Museum and the Wallace Collection, and is the Founding Artistic Director of The Arts Society of North Kent Evening. Hilary has extensive international experience leading art history tours across Europe and the US, and guides Special Interest Private Tours of the Buckingham Palace State Apartments for the Royal Collection Trust.

Image; Rijksmuseum Amsterdam 

Please note; 

• It is necessary to always BOOK IN ADVANCE a place to attend a lecture.  Our venue has a fixed capacity which we are unable to exceed.  Arrival at a lecture without booking may mean that we are unable to allow you to attend. 
• It is VITAL that all members attending register their arrival at the venue.  A comprehensive list is required in the event of a fire.
• A member has ONE free guest pass to use each lecture season.  If you would like to bring a guest, you must PRE BOOK a place.  Once you have used your free pass you are able to bring other guests for a fee of £10.  A guest may only attend as such on two occasions.  We would be happy to offer membership to any guest should they wish to join having "tried us out".
• Recording of a lecture in any form - video or photographs  - is forbidden.  All of our lecturers are Arts Society Accredited and their desire to protect their intellectual property will be respected by The Arts Society Westminster.

Antony Gormley’s career spans nearly 40 years, during which time he has made sculpture that explores the relationship of the human body to space, often using his own body as his starting point.  His work has been shown throughout the world, in galleries including the Tate in London and the Hermitage in St Petersburg, but is also often on open display, as public art, such as Another Place at Crosby Beach, near Liverpool. As well as works that he is well known for, like the iconic Angel of the North, this lecture will look at some of his earlier and less well-known works, to give an overall view of the development of his work across his whole career, up to the present.

Rosalind Whyte has a BA and MA from Goldsmith’s College, and an MA (distinction) from Birkbeck College. Experienced guide at Tate Britain, Tate Modern, the Royal Academy and Greenwich. Lectures at Tate, to independent art societies and on cruises.

Image provided by lecturer.

Please note; 

• It is necessary to always BOOK IN ADVANCE a place to attend a lecture.  Our venue has a fixed capacity which we are unable to exceed.  Arrival at a lecture without booking may mean that we are unable to allow you to attend. 
• It is VITAL that all members attending register their arrival at the venue.  A comprehensive list is required in the event of a fire.
• A member has ONE free guest pass to use each lecture season.  If you would like to bring a guest, you must PRE BOOK a place.  Once you have used your free pass you are able to bring other guests for a fee of £10.  A guest may only attend as such on two occasions.  We would be happy to offer membership to any guest should they wish to join having "tried us out".
• Recording of a lecture in any form - video or photographs  - is forbidden.  All of our lecturers are Arts Society Accredited and their desire to protect their intellectual property will be respected by The Arts Society Westminster.

Step into the colourful, hidden world of Britain’s 2,000-mile inland waterway network.  Far more than historic trade routes, our canals form an extraordinary open-air gallery of art, architecture, and engineering.

In this vivid and engaging lecture, landscape architect and writer Roger Butler explores the rich visual vernacular of the waterways—from grand sweeping aqueducts and UNESCO World Heritage Sites to whimsical listed buildings, intricate "Roses and Castles" narrowboat paintings, and decorative iron bollards. This talk offers a fresh perspective on a unique landscape where industrial history meets artistic tradition.

Roger Butler is a landscape architect, writer, photographer and lecturer with a lifelong passion for canal history and traditions.  Having worked on major UK canal restorations and consulted for bodies such as Natural England and Waterways Ireland, Roger brings deep expertise and a keen artistic eye to his subject.  He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, a Licentiate of the Royal Photographic Society and a regular contributor to leading heritage and outdoor publications.

Image provided by lecturer.

Please note; 

• It is necessary to always BOOK IN ADVANCE a place to attend a lecture.  Our venue has a fixed capacity which we are unable to exceed.  Arrival at a lecture without booking may mean that we are unable to allow you to attend. 
• It is VITAL that all members attending register their arrival at the venue.  A comprehensive list is required in the event of a fire.
• A member has ONE free guest pass to use each lecture season.  If you would like to bring a guest, you must PRE BOOK a place.  Once you have used your free pass you are able to bring other guests for a fee of £10.  A guest may only attend as such on two occasions.  We would be happy to offer membership to any guest should they wish to join having "tried us out".
• Recording of a lecture in any form - video or photographs  - is forbidden.  All of our lecturers are Arts Society Accredited and their desire to protect their intellectual property will be respected by The Arts Society Westminster.

Born in Nuremberg in 1471, Albrecht Dürer was a precocious young talent whose visionary technique transformed Western art.  This illuminating lecture charts Dürer’s meteoric rise, exploring his early life and masterpieces within the vibrant, shifting landscape of Reformation Europe.

At a time when Europe was opening up to unprecedented cultural and intellectual exchange, Dürer bridged two artistic worlds.  Join art historian Leslie Primo to discover how the Northern European prodigy profoundly influenced the Italian Renaissance—and how the glory of Renaissance Italy, in turn, reshaped Dürer’s own genius.

Leslie Primo is an author, broadcaster and art historian specializing in Renaissance studies.  A former lecturer at the National Gallery, London, for 18 years, Leslie frequently appears on television and radio, including BBC documentaries on Michelangelo, Turner, and the Renaissance.  He has written and consulted for major publications with the Getty and the Royal Academy of Arts, and his book The Foreign Invention of British Art is published by Thames & Hudson.

Image; Albrecht Dürer, Hare, 1502; watercolour and gouache, brush, press photo © The Albertina Museum, Vienna

Please note; 

• It is necessary to always BOOK IN ADVANCE a place to attend a lecture.  Our venue has a fixed capacity which we are unable to exceed.  Arrival at a lecture without booking may mean that we are unable to allow you to attend. 
• It is VITAL that all members attending register their arrival at the venue.  A comprehensive list is required in the event of a fire.
• A member has ONE free guest pass to use each lecture season.  If you would like to bring a guest, you must PRE BOOK a place.  Once you have used your free pass you are able to bring other guests for a fee of £10.  A guest may only attend as such on two occasions.  We would be happy to offer membership to any guest should they wish to join having "tried us out".
• Recording of a lecture in any form - video or photographs  - is forbidden.  All of our lecturers are Arts Society Accredited and their desire to protect their intellectual property will be respected by The Arts Society Westminster.

By 1960, the initial frenzy of rock ‘n’ roll was beginning to fade, its biggest stars were moving on, and a new generation of teenagers was hungry for something fresh.  What arrived was a cultural revolution led by four lads from Liverpool—The Beatles—who broke every rule and every record in the book.

This high-energy lecture charts the explosive first five years of the 1960s, widely regarded as one of the most creative and innovative eras in musical history.  Former radio executive Steve King takes us on a nostalgic journey through the landmark songs, defining genres, and legendary artists who reshaped popular culture forever.

Steve King spent 35 years at the top of the UK radio industry as a broadcaster, programmer, and events director, managing major national radio brands.  Over his distinguished broadcasting career, he has interviewed counts of iconic music legends and directed more than 50 multi-artist shows at flagship venues including the Royal Albert Hall and London Palladium. An accredited Arts Society lecturer, Steve brings his deep industry insider knowledge and passion for pop music to life in highly entertaining, multimedia talks.

She loves you - Beatles record sleeve - Wikipedia image

Please note; 

• It is necessary to always BOOK IN ADVANCE a place to attend a lecture.  Our venue has a fixed capacity which we are unable to exceed.  Arrival at a lecture without booking may mean that we are unable to allow you to attend. 
• It is VITAL that all members attending register their arrival at the venue.  A comprehensive list is required in the event of a fire.
• A member has ONE free guest pass to use each lecture season.  If you would like to bring a guest, you must PRE BOOK a place.  Once you have used your free pass you are able to bring other guests for a fee of £10.  A guest may only attend as such on two occasions.  We would be happy to offer membership to any guest should they wish to join having "tried us out".
• Recording of a lecture in any form - video or photographs  - is forbidden.  All of our lecturers are Arts Society Accredited and their desire to protect their intellectual property will be respected by The Arts Society Westminster.