All Suzanne's Art Courses



ALL THE FOLLOWING COURSES ARE HELD IN THE ANNEX, TORONTO.

@My Studio one can always count on a first rate projected image in a well darkened room.





 "GENIUS IN FOCUS" HAS BEEN REPATRIATED


What is "Genius in Focus"?
In my "Genius in Focus"  or "Genius" courses pivotal works from the history of Western art are analysed in detail. One painting is dicussed in each lecture. I place these paintings historically and artistically, explaining who influenced their creators and whom their creators influenced in turn. My lectures will treat the pieces technically, symbolically, culturally and psychoanalytically. Each series is chosen for its politically interesting subject matter, subject matter which often foreshadows issues we are dealing with today.  I am particularly drawn to paintings that have inspired interesting and innovative contemporary research.


I have put together a chronological list of my "Genius" paintings:
All lectures are 2 hours in length.

The Merode Altarpiece, Robert Campin, 1425 ?
The Ghent Altarpiece, Hubert & Jan van Eyck, 1432
Arnolfini Double Portrait (Marriage of), van Eyck's 1434
The Madonna of Cancellor Rolin, Jan van Eyck, 1435
The Virgin of Canon vander Paele, Jan van Eyck, 1436
The Isenheim Altarpiece – Grunewald, 1512-16 ?
The Bath of Diana, Parmigianino 1524/7
Holbein's French Ambassadors, 1533
The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Tulp – Rembrandt, 1632
Rembrandt'sNight Watch, 1642
Velázquez' Las Meninas, 1656
The Doctor's Visit, Jan Steen 1662
Watson and The Shark, Copley, 1778
David's The Death of Marat, 1783
C[itizen] Belley,Ex-Representative of the Colonies, Girodet, 1797
Portrait of a Negress, Benoist, 1800
Goya's The 3rd of May, 1808
The Raft of The Medusa, Gericault, 1819
The Bellelli Family (Degas) 1858-67
Dejeuner sur l”herbe, Manet, 1863
Olympia (Manet) 1863
Dejeuner Sur L'herbe (Cezanne) 1869
Summary Execution under the Moorish Kings of Grenada, Regnault, 1870
Mlle La La of The Cirque Fernando, Edgar Degas, 1879
Luncheon Of The Boating Party (Renoir) 1881
Christ's Entry into Brussels in 1889, James Ensor 1888
The Yellow House (Van Gogh) 1888
Au Moulin Rouge (Lautrec) 1889
Spirits Of The Dead Watching (Gauguin) 1892   
Nevermore, 1897 (Gauguin) 1897
The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899  
La vie, Picasso 1903
Demoiselles d’avignon, Picasso 1907
Water Lilies (Monet) 1907 +
Both Members of This Club, George Bellows, 1909
Negress in Black, Jan Sluijter 1921
Una, Lady Troubridge, Romaine Brooks 1924
Picasso's Guernica 1937
The Two Fridas, Frida Khalo 1939
Mr & Mrs Andrews without their heads, Yinka Shonibare 1998

David & Napoleon: The Iconography Of Power
A Conspiracy Of Silence: Gericault’s Raft Of The Medusa And The Abolitionist Movement
Manet & Zola: Parallel Lives
Cassatt & Degas: The Spinster & The Mysoginist
The Artist On The Edge: Art & Madness
Group Zero International

Genius in Focus: The Original
Eight or six week course.
Pivotal works from the history of Western art are discussed in detail. We will place them historically and artistically, explaining who influenced their creators and whom they influenced in turn. Our discussion will treat the pieces technically, symbolically, culturally and psychoanalytically. Amongst the eight works to be discussed will be:



van Eyck's  Arnolfini Double Portrait
Holbein's French Ambassadors, 
Rembrandt Night Watch
Velázquez' Las Meninas,
David's The Death of Marat
Gericault's Raft of The Medusa
Goya's The 3rd of May, 1808
Picasso's Guernica
This series has been chosen for its politically interesting subject matter that foreshadows so many issues today. In all eight paintings we will discuss fascinating contemporary research.

 Other Genius in Focus Lectures:
The Virgin of Canon vander Paele, Jan van Eyck, 1436
The Madonna of Cancellor Rolin, Jan van Eyck, 1435
The Ghent Altarpiece, Hubert & Jan van Eyck, 1432 (completed) 
 
 

 
Genius in Focus II: Towards a Modern World
Eight or six week course.
In these Art Talks pivotal works from the History of Art are discussed in detail, placing them historically as well as artistically, explaining by whom their creators were influenced and whom they influenced in turn, as well as analyzing them technically, symbolically and psychoanalytically. This series has been chosen for its politically interesting subject matter, that shadows so many of the issues we are dealing with today. In all eight paintings we will discuss the fascinating contemporary research available to us now.
The Bath of Diana, Parmigianino 1524/7
The Doctor's Visit, Jan Steen 1662
Port. Of Citoyen Belley, ex-representant des colonies, Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson 1797
Christ's Entry into Brussels in 1889, James Ensor 1888
Negress in Black, Jan Sluijter 1921
Una, Lady Troubridge, Romaine Brooks 1924
The Two Fridas, Frida Khalo 1939
Mr & Mrs Andrews without their heads, Yinka Shonibare 1998
 
                                                
GENIUS IN FOCUS:BLACK LOOKS 
Eight week course.
As most of you know, my main art historical concern these days is the imaging of non-Europeans in Western art. My research on Theodore Gericault's Raft of the Medusa and the Abolitionist Movement has opened some really interesting avenues to me, the result of which is Black Looks, a series of talks about eight of the most intriguing paintings that feature Africans as their subject. As usual we will place these images historically, politically, socially, psychologically and culturally, and explain how they may have affected the psyches and the opinions of contemporary viewers. And we will discuss the work around the work with examples of Africans in political situations, or as entertainers, as artists and writers, in the sports world and in the work force. Don't miss this course, it's fascinating.

Watson and The Shark, Copley, 1778
C[itizen] Belley,Ex-Representative of the Colonies, Girodet, 1797
Portrait of a Negress, Benoist, 1800
The Raft pf The Medusa, Gericault, 1819
Summary Execution under the Moorish Kings of Grenada, Regnault, 1870
Mlle La La of The Cirque Fernando, Edgar Degas, 1879
The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer, 1899      
Both Members of This Club, George Bellows, 1909


GENIUS IN FOCUS:       
THE IMPRESSIONISM SERIES
Eight or six week course,
In these Art Talks, pivotal works from the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist eras are discussed in detail, placing them historically as well as artistically, explaining by whom their creators were influenced and whom they influenced in turn, as well as analyzing them technically, symbolically and psychoanalytically. We will look at other works by the artist to describe the evolution of the artistic idea, as well as related works by other artists who worked in the same genre throughout history.
Each painting has been chosen for its archetypal position in today's popular culture. In all eight paintings we will discuss the fascinating contemporary research available to us now.
We will discuss the following paintings:
OLYMPIA (MANET)
THE BELLELLI FAMILY (DEGAS)
LUNCHEON OF THE BOATING PARTY (RENOIR)
WATER LILIES (MONET)
AU MOULIN ROUGE (LAUTREC)
DEJEUNER SUR L'HERBE (CEZANNE)
THE YELLOW HOUSE (VAN GOGH)
SPIRITS OF THE DEAD WATCHING (GAUGUIN)

Genius in Focus: 
The 19th Century
WARNING !!! This is a very cool course
The 19th century is one of the most exciting times for change; in industry, science, philosophy, as well as art. In this series of lectures we will discuss some well known Impressionist works as well as work by other artists of the same time but from different movements. There was so much artistic "action" during this time that the various movements occurred in tandem, one with the other. It is this idea of variousness and diversity that will reveal itself to us as we travel the real road that led to change and which in turn led to our own exciting world of contemporary art practice.

We will study the following 6 paintings in  detail.....I have included one topic of discussion for each of these paintings  that may not have occurred to you....

Portrait of a Negress, 1800 (Marie Benoist)  
We will discuss the image of the black female in western art.
Dejeuner sur l”herbe 1863(Manet)                                              We will discuss 19th century prostitution.
Summary Execution under the Moorish Kings of Grenada, 1870 (Henri Regnault)
We will discuss Orientalism and what it tells us about 19th century society.
Mlle Lala of The Cirque Fernando 1879 (Degas)
We will discuss the interest 19th century intellectuals and criminologists had in finding a connection between the physical and the psychological.
The Gulf Stream, 1899 (Winslow Homer)
We will discuss the change in stature of the black man in western art.
Nevermore, 1897 (Gauguin)
We will discuss the influence of English poetry and prose on French painting.

Genius in Focus: The 19th Century

WARNING !!! This is a very cool course

The 19th century is one of the most exciting times for change; in industry, science, philosophy, as well as art. In this series of lectures we will discuss some well known Impressionist works as well as work by other artists of the same time but from different movements. There was so much artistic "action" during this time that the various movements occurred in tandem, one with the other. It is this idea of variousness and diversity that will reveal itself to us as we travel the real road that led to change and which in turn led to our own exciting world of contemporary art practice.

We will study the following 6 paintings in  detail.....I have included one topic of discussion for each of these paintings  that may not have occurred to you....

Portrait of a Negress, 1800 (Marie Benoist)  
We will discuss the image of the black female in western art.
The Third of May 1808, 1814 (Goya)
We will discuss Spain, Napoleon & revolution 
Death of Sardanapalus, 1827 (Delacroix)
We will discuss Orientalism and what it tells us about 19th century society.
Olympia 1863 (Manet)
We will discuss 19th century prostitution.
Mlle Lala of The Cirque Fernando 1879 (Degas)
We will discuss the interest 19th century intellectuals and criminologists had in finding a connection between the physical and the psychological.
Vision After The Sermon, 1888 (Gauguin)
We will discuss the influence of mysticism in French painting.


Portrait of a Negress, Marie Benoist
                   We will discuss the image of the black female in western art.

The Third of May 1808, Goya
                         We will discuss Spain, Napoleon & revolution 
Death of Sardanapolus, Delacroix
We will discuss Orientalism and what it tells us about 19th century society.

Olympia, Manet
                             We will discuss 19th century prostitution.


Mlle Lala of The Cirque Fernando, Degas
We will discuss the interest 19th century intellectuals and criminologists had in finding a connection between the physical and the psychological.


Vision After The Sermon, Gauguin
      We will discuss the influence of mysticism in French painting.









This first capsule will look at 3 of the most beautiful, important and interesting works that came out of Northern Europe during the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries. Each will give us fascinating insights into the daily political lives of Kings, Bishops and Bankers.
The Arnolfini Double Portrait - van Eyck
The French Ambassadors - Holbein
Las Meninas - Velazquez
3 week course. Cost - $150
The second capsule will concentrate on the art of war and revolution. We will discuss how the artists used psychological grace notes to manipulate their viewers and press their cause. And, as always, we'll discuss the story behind the work.
The Night Watch - Rembrandt
The Death of Marat - David
The 3rd of May, 1808 - Goya 
3 week course, Cost - $150 













"Genius" Minnie Capsule 3:
Capsule three will be a very interesting and unusual look at how medical techniques and developments are manifested in art. We will discuss ergotism, quacks, and the "wandering wombs" of lovesick maidens. This capsule is not to be missed.
The Isenheim Altarpiece - Grunewald
The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Tulp - Rembrandt
The Doctor's Visit - Jan Steen
3 week course. Cost - $150 


Ground Breaking Artists  Style Lectures
ie. one artist's life & work per class

Lovers And Other Strangers: The Dynamics Of The Artist Couple

6– 2 Hour Lectures
The couple in any business is a curiosity. Two artists who are involved romantically as well as artistically are no less interesting. Who influenced whom? Who benefited from the relationship?  Did the dynamics between partners change as time wore on? Did they both survive the encounter?  In slide-illustrated lectures we discuss these as well as dozens of other interesting issues when we look at some of the high powered couples of the art world past and present and their artworks:  Rodin and Claudel, the Surrealists couples, O’Keefe and Stieglitz, Pollock and Krasner, Johns and Rauschenberg. Why did Cindy Sherman, Dora Maar, Frida Khalo and Georgia O’Keefe all try to become the Object of Desire?


Mannerism
Mannerism, the intoxicating style of the aged Michelangelo, the young Bronzino, of Parmigianino, Pontormo, Rosso, Allori, even El Greco, held a phantasmagorical sway over the art world as it processed, like a tipsy dowager queen, from the High Renaissance to the Baroque. Colour, light, almost surrealistic renditions of virgins, angels and saints, the Mannerists really were “something else”. 






POST IMPRESSIONISM & BEYOND: Modern Art Before Picasso 
The Impressionists opened the floodgates of artistic innovation and experimentation and things haven't been the same since. This course will concentrate on what happened between the Impressionists and Picasso.. We will spend a class on each of the Post-Impressionists: Gauguin, Lautrec, van Gogh, & Cezanne. Then we will then discuss the Fauves, the Symbolists, and the Expressionists, as well as any other major artistic movements of the 19th century, ending just before Picasso. This series will be 8 weeks in length, at my studio.

 


Picasso & Beyond: Art of the 20th Century
After a close look at Picasso and Matisse we will go on to discuss Surrealism, the New York Schools, the European Schools and the British Schools, including Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud and David  Hockney. We will discuss the rise of women painters, the Harlem Renaissance and much more.

8weeks

PICASSO IN 6 WEEKS: There is never enough time to discuss the true importance and innovative genius of PP, but I think with 8 - 2 hour lectures we should be able to scratch the surface.

Picasso & Women: Notorious for his alleged misogyny, these slide-illustrated lectures define the great man himself by the women in his life:  his mother and Gertrude Stein; Fernande Olivier and Eva Gouel; Olga Koklova, Marie Thérèse and Dora Maar; and Françoise Gilot, Jacqueline Roque, Maya and Paloma. 
8 weeks



Vermeer, Rembrandt, and The Dutch Golden Age: 
In honour of the once in a lifetime, already sold out, Vermeer Exhibition at the Rijksmuseum, I am delighted to be presenting a series of art talks on the mysterious Johannes Vermeer, and the Dutch Golden Age.
Thursdays, 11am to 1pm - with a possibility of an evening class if requested
April 20, 27, May 4, 11, 18, 25
$275/student
Lecture details to follow.



Art History courses open for registration:


El Greco, A View of Toledo, 1596-1600
A SPANISH FLAVOUR
During the month of April we will discuss the very greatest Spanish masters: El Greco, Velazquez, Goya, and Picasso. Spain, a country isolated over the centuries from much of Europe due to its conservative culture managed to produce some of the most important artists in the history of western art.  In this mini capsule we will, each week, discuss the life and work of  one of our chosen artists.
 El Greco 1541-1614
Velazquez 1599-1660
 Goya 1746-1828
 Picasso 1881-1973

4 weeks


 





The Self Portrait
An artist's view of him or herself has always been a fascination to the art connoisseur. In this 5 week course we will look at the development of the genre in all it’s magnificence, starting with the greatest of all, Rembrandt. 


 Rembrandt
Vigée and The Girls
Caravaggio and Others  
19th century artists
20th century and beyond









ART OF THE AFRICAN DIASPORA: FROM GERICAULT'S "RAFT OF THE MEDUSA" TO JANE ALEXANDER'S "BUTCHER BOYS" & BEYOND    










A FINE SELECTION OF DAMES
In honour of this astonishing fact I have decided to offer a special course on women artists. These are the artists we will focus on but we will discuss other as well.
This will be a 4 week course.
Starts April 10, Wednesday  6:30 to 8:30pm
Starts April 11, Thursday 11 to 1pm 
$200

 
Hidegard von Bingen  1098-1179
Sofonisba Anguissola  c.1532-1625
Artemisia Gentileschi 1593-c.1656
Giovanna Garzoni 1600-1670
Judith Leyster 1609-1660
Vigee Le Brun 1755-1842


 


Artists for a New World:
Emily, Georgia & Frida 
Three brilliantly innovative female artists rose, each independently, at almost exactly the same time, from three great countries of the New World. Emily Carr from Canada, Georgia O'Keeffe from the United States and Frida Kahlo from Mexico greeted the new century in diverse areas of the continent. Born within a few decades of each other, these three women dealt, not only with the new frontiers of their nations, and their gender, but also the new frontiers of the rapidly changing world of 20th century art.
3 weeks



 

  Artists for a New World: 

Cassatt, Morisot & Valadon

We will look at the very important and beautiful work of three women artists who were major players in the Impressionist movement: Mary Cassatt, Berthe Morisot, and Suzanne Valadon. Born within a few years of each other, these three women dealt, not only with the troubles brewing in European society, and the new frontiers being broached by their sisters in the rapidly changing world of  art.

3 weeks






 

Art in Place   

The idea of "place" is of great importance in an artist's oeuvre. It could signify change, light, happiness, misery, madness, success, or even artistic rebirth. In this series, places of inspiration, that have lead to enormous artistic development, have been chosen for discussion. We will consider the masterworks done, by these artists, in these locations, and try to understand the reasons for the changes that occurred due to these relocations.   

We will discuss 6 of the following:
Holbein in London
Rubens in Paris
Degas in New Orleans
Van Gogh in Arles
Gauguin in Tahiti
O'Keeffe in New Mexico
Emily Carr in the Queen Charlotte Islands
Lawren Harris in Georgian Bay
Matisse in Morocco
Klimt in Vienna
6 weeks




 

The Northern Renaissance
The course will commence with a perusal of the delightful, illuminated manuscript  "Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry". Then, the enormous changes that occur with the development of oil paint in the alchemical laboratories of the North, will be considered.  We will discuss the two jewels of the County of Flanders, Bruges and Ghent, to enhance our understanding of this time of splendour, pageantry, plague and fear. The artists are legion. Jan van Eyck, van der Goes, Campin, Memling,  Durer, Altdorfer, Grunewald, and Holbein are some of the masters we will discover. The seemingly mysterious symbolism and iconography that went into the creation of their masterpieces is complex, and fascinating. To understand these works, as the populace of the time understood them, connects us, intellectually, to the universal.
8 week course



Romanticism:
The art of Romanticism has little to do with our conventional ideas of romance. Rather, Romanticism is the naked soul of the artist, exposed. It is the confessional of the seeker with emotions beyond his ability to control. Witness the rise of Romanticism as the Terror of 1793 destroys the sense of order and stoicism expressed by the Neo-Classicists.  Follow Géricault as he visits charnel houses in an attempt to express his horror of government corruption and the slave trade, and Delacroix as he seeks to overcome his shadowy paternity through art.

The Rise Of Romanticism: Ingres, David & Gros
The Deaf Man's House: Goya
Art Of The Conscience: Géricault
Bloodless Violence: Delacroix
Landscape & Romanticism: Constable & Millet
The Nightmare Scenario: Fuseli & Blake
Turner, Goethe & The Poets
The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood

6/8 weeks




 

GROUND BREAKING ARTISTS, PART 1
Meet eight great "ground breaking" artists of the Western world. From the Baroque we will discuss Caravaggio, Rubens, Van Dyck, and Velazquez, then we will jump to the Post-Impressionist era where we will discover Cezanne, Toulouse-Lautrec, Van Gogh, and Gauguin. Revel in the loves, hates, foibles, and indiscretions of these gifted painters. Through viewing their works, come to understand the difficulties and decisions involved in the act of creation and learn to appreciate the struggles underlying the pivotal expressions of these artist-geniuses. Through slide-illustrated lectures, explore not only the exciting artistic challenges of their times, but also the political and cultural contexts within which they worked. Discover right brain thinking at its best when you discover how these trailblazers understood, perceived, and constructed the world around them.
6/8 weeks


Ground Breaking Artists II
Bruegel, Bosch, Durer, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Chardin, Ingres, Hogarth
6/8 weeks




 

Ground Breaking Artists III
Meet eight great "ground breaking" artists of the Western world. Artemisia Gentileschi, Honore Daumier, Thomas Eakins, Kathe Kollowitz, Otto Dix, Lucian Freud, Paula Rego and William Kentridge. Revel in the loves, hates, foibles, and indiscretions of these gifted artists. Through viewing their works, come to understand the difficulties and decisions involved in the act of  creation. Through slide-illustrated lectures, explore not only the exciting artistic challenges of their times, but also the political and cultural contexts within which they worked. Discover right brain thinking at its best when you discover how these trailblazers understood, perceived, and constructed the world around them.
8 week course.
Artemisia Gentileschi, 1593-1652
Honore Daumier, 1808-1879
Thomas Eakins, 1844-1916
Kathe Kollowitz, 1867-1945
Otto Dix, 1891-1969
Lucian Freud, 1922
Paula Rego, 1935
William Kentridge, 1955




 


The Impressionist VictoryEveryone loves the Impressionists, but how many really understand the history and controversy behind the movement. Who were the leaders of the group, those young up-starts who changed our way of looking and thinking about art forever? What was their raison d'etre? Since first created in the 19th century, the freshness and joie de vivre so often portrayed in these Impressionist paintings has had the ability to take viewers to a gentler and more pleasant place, but as always, there is more to it than that.  Join Suzanne as she guides you, with the help of Power Point presentations, through the aesthetic, psychological, political, and technological innovations of a movement that captured the spirit of the times, as well as the imagination of artists and art lovers throughout the world. 8 weeks


Altarpieces/Masterpieces
The beauty and meaning of Christianity's earliest visual presentations are often lost to contemporary seekers. The seemingly mysterious symbolism and iconography that went into the creation of these masterpieces is complex, fascinating and often inspiring. To understand these works, as the populace of the time understood them, not only connects us intellectually to the universal, but perhaps, also spiritually. Experience and understand the complexity, elegance, pageantry and politics of these visual masterpieces. We will examine Robert Campin's Merode Altarpiece, Van Eyck's Ghent Altarpiece, Grunewald's Isenhiem Altarpiece, Gozzoli's Journey of The Magi/Ghirlandaio's Life of the Virgin, Giotto's Arena Chapel/Piero della Francesca's Legend of the True Cross and finally Massaccio's Brancacci Chapel/Mantagna's Camera degli Sposi.
6 weeks


The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood: The very British world of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood will be discussed in this 3 week series. We will consider the symbolic significance and use of Christian, Arthurian and Shakespearian imagery by the PRB. The work of all of the senior members, Rossetti, Millais, Brown, and Burne-Jones, will enter into our discussions. We will also consider the reasoning behind the forming of the society.
3 weeks




GREAT MUSEUMS OF EUROPE
5 & 8 week series available

 GREAT MUSEUMS OF THE WORLD
5 & 8 week series available

       

 


 


THE COURTLY ARTS
This course will consider the taste and patronage of some of the most intriguing crowned heads of European history and even the taste of some of their mistresses. We will time  travel in absolute style as we discuss the rags to riches stories of those artists who where fortunate enough to receive the rubber stamp of Royal approval.  The Limbourg Brothers, Claus Sluter, van der Weyden, Mantagna, Titian,  Pontormo, Bronzino, Gheeraerts, Hilliard, Oliver, Eworth, Boucher, Fragonard, Vigee Le Brun, to name just a few of the lesser known.....the list is endless, rich and varied.
This course is filled with remarkable images, like the unusual group of portraits of court ladies in the final months of their pregnancies, painted during the reign of Elizabeth I. Theories abound. Were these portraits a response to an issueless virgin queen, and an unknown dynastic future, or the acceptance of the high mortality rate of women during childbirth.
Eight week course.
We will discuss Art in The Courts of the following power brokers:
The Dukes of Burgundy & Berry
The Dukes of Mantua
The Medici
Elizabeth I
Louis XIV -The Sun King
Mme de Pompadour
Marie Antoinette
Napoleon & Josephine




 

The Early Renaissance in Italy
The course will commence with a discussion of the enormous changes that occur with the coming of the great Giotto, the prophet of light, form and expression. We will then consider the work of Massacio, della Francesca, Fra Angelico,  Uccello, Lippi, Mantegna, Botticelli and others.
 

6 week course.
Starts January 15 or 22 (the participants are currently deciding on the start date-join us and get a vote)

Tuesday evenings 7 to 9pm @ my studio 


The High Renaissance in Italy
Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo and Titian will be among the magnificent artists covered in this course. The history of a dysfunctional Italy, its great city states, and the politics, music and literature developed during this time of splendour, discovery, idealism, plague, fear and suspicion will enhance our study of the era in both courses.
 

This course will immediately follow the Early Renaissance course. 

6 week course.
Tuesday evenings 7 to 9pm @ my studio
 


THE EARLY RENAISSANCE IN ITALY
 This eight week series of lectures will encourage a solid understanding of the importance of  some of the greatest artists in the history of the world. The course will commence with a discussion of the enormous changes that occur with the coming of the great Giotto, the prophet of light, form and expression. We will then discuss other  Renaissance wonders and discoveries. We will consider the work of Massacio, della Francesca, Fra Angelico,  Uccello, Lippi, Mantegna, Botticelli.
6 weeks

THE HIGH RENAISSANCE IN ITALY
Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo will be among the magnificent artists covered in this course. The history of a dysfunctional Italy, its great city states, and the politics, music and literature developed during this time of splendour, discovery, idealism, plague, fear and suspicion will enhance our study of the era.
6 weeks 


ART IN TIMES OF CONFLICT 

In honour of the upcoming 100th anniversary of WW1 I will be offering these special WW1 Art History lectures. Locations, dates & times will be announced in the new year.

Art From 1914 to 1919: Not just Matisse & PicassoIn this lecture Suzanne will discuss the remarkable variety of work that was created during the war years. We will consider works of art by Matisse, Picasso, Kandinsky, Nolde, Kollwitz, Stanley Spencer, The Blue Rider Group, even the Bloomsbury Group and Canada’s own Group of Seven.


War Art in Canada & The Empire: Artists in The Trenches Anyone who has ever visited a war museum will understand the remarkable task artists were set when sent into the trenches with nothing more than their paints, canvasses and easels. Art done by these sensitive individuals will move and fascinate you. Join Suzanne for an enlightening visit into the chaotic world of our forebears at war

WW1 Propaganda Art: A look at both sides War propaganda art is an astonishing and important part of maintaining the strength of the populace whilst at the same time attempting to destroy the confidence of the enemy. For these reasons some bizarre and terrifying images have been created. Suzanne will discuss a selection of these images, from both sides of the WW1 conflict.

Art Out of War Explore art arising in time of war through a consideration of major artists and their works; Goya, Manet, David, Rembrandt & Picasso. Also considered will be art created in reaction to the Anti-Apartheid movement, Abolition Movement, Holocaust, Middle East conflict and conflicts that resulted from USSR dissolution.

A Series of Ten Thematic Lectures
Art: Reflections on Society

Black Looks & The African Diaspora
War & Revolution: Art as Propaganda
Symbolism in Medieval & Early Renaissance Art
A Fine Selection of Dames: Women in Art
Nature & Art en Plein Air
The Courtly Arts: Royal Patrons
Lovers & Other Strangers: Now Heaven Walks on Earth
The Doctor is In: Medicine in Art
Artists on The Edge: Creative Madness
Art Now

Full day double lecture workshops

A full day, double lecture event is something for which St Mike's and I have become famous. Here are only a few of the workshops I've done.

A Day With Piero della Francesca
A Day With Vermeer
A Day With Antony van Dyck
A Day With Jan van Eyck
A Day With Rembrandt


ART & PRACTICE
This exciting new course creates a true appreciation of the Artist's world by combining the best of Art History with actual practice in the artist's studio.  Evenings of lectures on the History of Art will alternate with evenings of art making. One of the best ways to understand Art is to try it yourself.....  this develops both your analytical and intuitive sides and will lead you to a fundamental realisation of what Art is all about.
6 week course.
The art supplies used during the studio classes will be included.
1) Impressionism: Renoir & Monet
2) Impressionism studio: chalk pastel on paper
3) Post Impressionism: Gauguin & Van Gogh
4) Colour field painting studio: acrylic on paper
5) Cubism: Picasso & Braque
6) Cubism studio: collage & ink on paper


FROM DRAWING TO PAINTING
An 8 week course


ANCIENT & MODERN PAINTING TECHNIQUES

The use of ancient and modern techniques in two dimensional mixed media will be demonstrated over a series of 8 studio classes. The course begins with a slide lecture introducing the techniques as used in ancient and modern times. Gold and silver leaf, silver point drawing, collage, decoupage, (encaustic/intaglio when possible) found objects and painting with different media in a single work are some of the techniques that will be incorporated. As well you will learn different methods of creating textures and built up surfaces including distressing and carving into two dimensional artwork (with Dremel type power tools when available). How to plan and prepare a work using multiple techniques will also be discussed. Each class will focus on a specific group of techniques and participants will each create one finished work incorporating all or most of the methods covered. 
An 8 week course


ANCIENT & MODERN DRAWING TECHNIQUES 
An 8 week course


CHAGALL & THE RUSSIAN AVANT-GARDE

I fell in love with Chagall during the many lecture tours I gave at the Chagall Museum on the Cote d'Azur, and you will too. Humour, folklore, innocence and colour combined to create one of the most popular artists of the 20th century. Pablo Picasso said of Marc Chagall, “When Matisse dies, Chagall will be the only painter left who understands what colour really is." We will discuss the great Russian artists that matured alongside Chagall: Kandinsky, Goncharova, Rodchenko and Malevich. Culturally more eastern and exotic, the Russians coloured and refined the cosmopolitan approach to art that the artists of the French capital had dominatedduring the early years of the 20th century.
6 weeks





BEYOND FRENCH IMPRESSIONISM The Impressionists opened the floodgates of artistic innovation and experimentation and things haven't been the same since. This course will assume a familiarity with Manet, Monet, Degas and Renoir, though they will be reviewed briefly, and will commence with a discussion of the "other" Impressionists, such as Sisley and Pizzarro. We will then take an indepth look at the Post-Impressionists, the Fauves, the Symbolists, and the Expressionists, as well as other major artistic movements of the 19th century, ending just before Picasso.


A HISTORY OF ART: From Cave to Condo:
I've had a few requests for an overview of the history of painting from the cave paintings to Vermeer, to Picasso to Banksy. I have decided to respond with a series of 10 or 20 lectures.
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