E-News Bulletin January 2026

Happy New Year to all of our members! We hope you are excited to start 2026 with a fantastic lineup of talks and lectures, featuring inspiring speakers and engaging topics.

SOCIETY EVENTS

Our next members lecture, a members’ recommendation, is Sir Joshua Reynolds and the Indian Cashmere Shawl on Tuesday January 13th at 18:00. This is an online Zoom event. This is a free event for members but booking is required.

Places are available on our upcoming study events:

Not the Dark Ages!, a 5 week course at Lettsom House with Dr Sally Dormer on Thursdays from 8th January to 5th February 2026.

The History and Art of Heraldry, a study day at The Linnean Society of London with Adam Tuck, Lancaster Herald, on Wednesday 11th February 2026.

Understanding the Italian Renaissance: History, Society and the Rise of the Artist, a 5 week online course with Dr Dorigen Caldwell on Thursdays from 12th February to 19th March 2026 (please note there are no lectures on 12th March).

Michaelina Wautier, a study day at The Linnean Society of London with Dr Adam Sammut, on Thursday 16th April 2026.

All the above are in-person study events (except Understanding the Italian Renaissance) and are also offered on a post-event recording only basis, with recordings available to all attendees for 4 weeks.

There are also many upcoming study visits and walks:

Visit to V&A East Storehouse: Picasso backcloths and related materials on Monday 19th January. This event is now waiting list only.

British Library Conservation Studio Tour on Monday 9th February and Monday 23rd February. These events are now waiting list only.

College of Arms Visit, at the College of Arms, with Adam Tuck, Lancaster Herald, on Thursday 26th of March.

NEW Visit to St George’s Chapel and Archives, Windsor on Friday 24th April. Booking is now open.

NEW Visit to Canterbury Cathedral with Dr Sally Dormer on Wednesday 20th May. Booking is now open.

Please bear in mind that in order for these events to go ahead, we need to cover their costs. We kindly ask that members book as early as possible to ensure that events do not need to be rescheduled or at worst, cancelled.

Dates for your diary:

6th March 2026 at 11:00 – Curator tour of Kari Anne Helleberg Bahri’s exhibition at Bluerider ART Gallery. Booking will be open shortly

6th, 7th and 8th October 14.00-16.00 – a three-day online course on Barbizon and the Making of Modern Landscape with Jo Rhymer. Booking will be open shortly.

Current Exhibitions and Lectures in London

Talk: Music & Art – The symbolism of music in Dutch genre painting. at The Foundling Museum. Online and in person on January 26th at 15:00.

Explore the fascinating hidden symbols in 17th-century Dutch genre painting in this talk by art historian Mariska Beekenkamp-Wladimiroff. Discover how the two disciplines of art and music were brought together, opening up this genre of painting to an audience that did not always share the same spoken or written language.

Henry VIII’s Lost Dagger at Strawberry Hill House & Garden. On now until 15 February.

Showtime! at Charles Dickens Museum. On now until 18 January.

With thanks to Eva Bigalke, you can access and download a listing of current and future exhibitions showing in London from now until July 2026 here.

Overseas Exhibitions

The Scharf Collection: Goya, Monet, Cezanne, Bonnard, Grosse. Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Germany. Open now until the 15th February.

Featuring around 150 masterpieces from a major German private collection, this exhibition traces three centuries of European art from Goya and French Realism through Impressionism and Cubism to contemporary works, illustrating the evolution of painting and collecting over time.

Cézanne, Fondation Beyeler, Riehen, Switzerland. Open from 25th January – 25th May

A show dedicated entirely to Paul Cézanne, the exhibition highlights the final and most important period of his career, presenting 50-80 oil paintings and watercolours that reveal his innovative investigations of form, light, and colour across still lifes, landscapes, portraits, and bathers.

Beyond our Horizons: From Tokyo to Paris. Galerie du 19M, Paris, France. Open from 29th January – 26th April

This exhibition brings together collaborative works by almost thirty French and Japanese artisans and designers, highlighting a rich exchange between traditional craftsmanship and contemporary design, and exploring how cultural heritage and innovation meet across borders.

If you wish to recommend other overseas exhibitions that may be of interest to fellow members please contact our Communications Coordinator.