An opportunity to explore in depth works from Abbot Hall’s permanent collection with a member of the Trust’s Curatorial or Education Team. Talks start at 2pm, last 20 minutes and are free with the price of admission.

7 & 23 July
John Ruskin: Rocks and Ferns in a Wood at Crossmount, Perthshire
Art critic, writer and social reformer, Ruskin was also an accomplished watercolourist. This scene demonstrates his characteristic attention to detail and his dedication to faithfully representing nature.

6 & 20 August
Kurt Schwitters: Flight
After fleeing Nazi Germany, Schwitters lived in exile. The works he produced while in Cumbria convey his sense of displacement. This mixed-media piece evokes literal and metaphorical interpretations of flight.

3 & 17 September
George Romney: Emma Hart as Miranda
High-society beauty and favourite muse Emma Hart sat for Romney over 330 times in many mythological and literary guises. Here she is depicted as Miranda, the heroine from Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’.

8 & 22 October
R. B. Kitaj: K Enters the Castle at Last
This wonderfully surreal painting by the late R.B. Kitaj is based on the adventures of K., the protagonist of ‘The Castle’ by Franz Kafka.

12 & 26 November
Daniel Gardner: Portrait of an Actress
Kendal-born Gardner followed the example of his mentor, George Romney, by moving to London to pursue his artistic career. He painted hundreds of portraits of the fashionable individuals of his time.

3 & 17 December
George Romney: The Four Friends
This piece provides an unusually informal glimpse of George Romney’s social circle, incorporating a playful self-portrait of the artist and three revealing portraits of his friends.