2 Audley Square
Mayfair, London W1K
UK
Founded in 1994, THE COURSE offers art history lectures, opera and literature courses, guided museum visits and London walks.
This course will examine the changing face of the portrait from the 6th century to the present. It will look at how and why its meaning and function have mutated and why artists are still drawn to this medium despite the advent of photography. It will also explore whether a portrait has to convey an accurate likeness and how artists went about trying to convey “character”.
JOSHUA REYNOLDS AND THE PORTRAIT OF OMAI: Celebrity & the Exotic in England
This lecture will concentrate on one iconic portrait and the context in which it came about. In its time, Joshua Reynolds’s portrait of Omai became an emblem of Britain at the height of its imperial powers. We will look at his ideas of self-image, his influences and how this related to Omai. What does this portrait tell us about C18th English society, its perception or preconception of the Other or non-white European? How prevalent were pseudo-scientific ideas which affected the way Omai was perceived and finally envisioned? What happened when Omai returned to the South Seas? Can one ever go back and what was the impact of returning?