Foreigners in London (Wenceslaus Hollar, Chronicler of London)

Established in 1994, THE COURSE offers exciting and innovative lectures in the History of Art, Literature, Music and Opera.

In “Foreigners in London”, Leslie Primo will discuss why the aristocracy preferred foreign painters to native-born English ones? Why did foreigners come in the first place? What was their motivation and what was the impact of foreigners on English art and art practice? This course will trace foreign artists from the Tudors to the Neo-Classical looking at their origins and how they came to work in England.

WENCESLAUS HOLLAR (1607-1677) Chronicler of London

Hollar was an artist and master engraver from Prague who became intimately involved with London not only documenting its views and London Bridge but also contemporary trials and executions.  We will explore the influence on Hollar by van Dyck, Holbein and the European painting tradition and how he met the demand for the production of posthumous portraits in the Royal Collection (in the form of engravings) as well as his interest in wildlife and textures in materials.