Art Appreciation II – Laura Knight & English Impressionism

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED

Tutor:  Tim Stimson

Laura Knight’s career began in earnest at Staithes on the North Yorkshire coast, with her husband-to-be, Harold, and other artists inspired by outdoor painting.  In paint and prose she expressed her admiration and solidarity with the hardy fisher folk of Staithes whilst developing her own painting techniques,  The Staithes painters were part of the ‘plein air’ movement which erupted in the 1870s.

At Newlyn on the Cornish coast, Laura Knight discovered herself and her art. At the artists’ community revolving around Stanhope Forbes and other talented artists, her brightly coloured poster-like clarity and optimism ensured her increasing popularity.  Her move to London with Harold opened the subject matter for which she has become famous – gypsies, the ballet and circuses.  Between the wars, Dame Laura Knight RA was undoubtedly the most popular British painter, interest in whom has re-emerged recently.

Tim’s involvement in art began with the practical.  For a number of years he was a professional painter and ceramicist in Scotland and Wales, before returning to university to study literature and the history of art.

For the last 30 years he has been a freelance cultural/art historian, specialising in 17th- and 19th-century art and society.  He now lectures for the University of Cambridge, the WEA, the Art Fund and The Arts Society (previously NADFAS) and presents residential study courses n Britain and Europe.  Tim has now completed two lecture tours of Australia, the last in 2016, and presented a lecture for Hull City of Culture 2017 on T E Ferens, patron of Hulls’ newly refurbished gallery.