The Arts Society Tring Park

01/10/2026

'20th Century Art in an Hour' is the topic of our next lecture with Sara Ciacci on Wednesday 14 October 2026 10.30am at the Civic Centre, Berkhamsted.

This is a whistlestop tour of major artworks, key themes, important ideas and stylistic changes in Modern and Contemporary art from the late 1800s to today to serve as an introduction to the myriad of styles in art in the 20th century.

Sarah Ciacci has an MA in History of Art (Late 19th century French Painting and 20th Century Art) from University College London. She has been a Blue Badge Guide for London since 2008, specialising in art, museums and galleries. Since 2008 she has trained Blue Badge Guides in the National Gallery and is an art lecturer for trainee guides in Tate Britain, Tate Modern and for a period in the National Portrait Gallery. From 2008-2023 she was Adjunct Faculty at Richmond University teaching the History of British Art, the History of Museums in London and the History of London. She is a gallery educator and runs regular courses and independent lectures on a variety of art historical periods.

We are a friendly local society, enjoying all aspects of the arts. Our aim is to increase knowledge and enjoyment of the decorative and visual arts and broaden our acquaintance with people of similar interests.

If you wish to attend a lecture as a guest please contact us via the website contact form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the day.

In addition to lectures, visits are arranged to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings. Visits are at an additional cost to the annual membership fee of £55.

For full details of upcoming activities visit our website: http://www.theartssocietytringpark.org.uk

04/09/2026

42 Tring Park Arts Society members braved the heat recently and visited Kew Gardens in August to see the 30 Henry Moore sculptures on loan from Hertfordshire. The pieces had been installed throughout the gardens with a separate collection of 90 pieces in the Shirley Sherwood gallery. This was the largest display of his work in a generation.

Why not come along to our next lecture on Wednesday 9 September. Full details here: https://theartssocietytringpark.org.uk/Lectures/FutureLectures.aspx

If you wish to attend a lecture as a guest please contact us via the website contact form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the day.

In addition to lectures, visits are arranged to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings. Visits are at an additional cost to the annual membership fee of £55.

01/09/2026

Our next event: The Genius of Antonio Stradivari by Tony Faber on Wednesday 9 September at 10.30am at the Civic Centre, Berkhamsted .

Two hundred and fifty years after Antonio Stradivari’s death, his violins and cellos remain the most highly prized instruments in the world. Loved by great musicians and capable of fetching fabulous sums when sold, their tone and beauty are legendary. Every subsequent violin-maker has tried to match them. Not one has succeeded. How can that be? This lecture explores that central mystery by following some of Stradivari’s instruments from his workshop to the present day. It is a story that travels from the salons of Vienna to the concert halls of New York, and from the breakthroughs of Beethoven’s last quartets to the first phonographic recordings.

Toby Faber is an experienced lecturer and public speaker who has been accredited by The Arts Society since 2012. His career began with Natural Sciences at Cambridge and has been through investment banking, management consulting and five years as managing director of the publishing company founded by his grandfather, Faber and Faber, where he remains on the board. He is also non-executive Chairman of its sister company, Faber Music and a director of Liverpool University Press. Toby has written three narrative histories: Stradivarius – Five Violins, One Cello and a Genius; Faberge’s Eggs; and Faber & Faber – The Untold Story, as well as a novel, Close to the Edge. Of these, only the obvious one is published by the family firm.

We are a friendly local society, enjoying all aspects of the arts. Our aim is to increase knowledge and enjoyment of the decorative and visual arts and broaden our acquaintance with people of similar interests.

If you wish to attend a lecture as a guest please contact us via the website contact form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the day.

In addition to lectures, visits are arranged to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings. Visits are at an additional cost to the annual membership fee of £55.

For full details of upcoming activities visit our website: http://www.theartssocietytringpark.org.uk

05/08/2026

With no meeting in August this is an opportunity to look back at the seven lectures we have had so far this year. The feedback forms that members complete at the conclusion of each lecture are an important tool for the Committee and assist us in giving feedback to the Arts Society and the lecturers themselves. The most popular lectures this year have been The Roots of Jazz and How to get down from a Yak.

Our Annual General Meeting precedes the September lecture on Wednesday 9 September and will commence at 10am. Our September lecturer is Tony Faber and the topic is the Genius of Antonio Stradivari.

We are a friendly local society, enjoying all aspects of the arts. Our aim is to increase knowledge and enjoyment of the decorative and visual arts and broaden our acquaintance with people of similar interests.

If you wish to attend a lecture as a guest please contact us via the website contact form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the day.

In addition to lectures, visits are arranged to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings. Visits are at an additional cost to the annual membership fee of £55.

For full details of upcoming activities visit our website:

The Arts Society Tring Park

04/07/2026

Our President, John Bly, has supplied antiques to the Georgian Gems exhibition at Benjamin Franklin House, London which runs until the end of July. By introducing authentic furnishings into the historic rooms of the founding father of the United States, visitors have a rare insight into how he lived.

01/07/2026

Our next event: Fiction, Fallacy & Fake News: spin and propaganda in art throughout the ages by Geri Parlby on Wednesday 08 July 2026 10.30 hrs at the Civic Centre, Berkhamsted

Fake News has been around since the time of the Egyptian pharaohs and art has always been one of its favourite media. This lecture uncovers the subtle art of spin and propaganda in art from the glories of Ancient Mesopotamia to the Norman Conquest and then onto Elizabethan England and the dark days of N**i Germany. Every picture tells a story - whether it is true or not is an entirely different matter.

Geri Parlby's career spans across diverse fields. She started as a news and investigative reporter via Mirror Group newspapers before becoming Head of Press for United International Pictures, handling major blockbuster publicity campaigns from Paramount, Universal, MGM & UA studios throughout the 1980s. She then set up her own London based film and video PR agency which she ran for 8 years before retiring to start a family.

Driven by her passion for art she studied for an MA in History of Art at the Courtauld Institute before gaining a theology PhD from the University of Roehampton. Geri's extensive knowledge and engaging speaking style led her to become an accredited Arts Society lecturer and she has been lecturing both across the UK and internationally for the past 18 years.

We are a friendly local society, enjoying all aspects of the arts. Our aim is to increase knowledge and enjoyment of the decorative and visual arts and broaden our acquaintance with people of similar interests.

If you wish to attend a lecture as a guest please contact us via the website contact form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the day.

In addition to lectures, visits are arranged to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings. Visits are at an additional cost to the annual membership fee of £55.

For full details of upcoming activities visit our website:

The Arts Society Tring Park

01/06/2026

Viking Gods & Valkyries: The Art of Norse Mythology with James Vaux on Wednesday 10 June 2026

This lecture explores how Norse myths and legends have been portrayed in the decorative and fine arts over more than 1,300 years. The talk begins with a brief overview of the pantheon of deities, the Norse creation story and Ragnarök, the twilight of the gods. It then looks at Viking age representations in wood, stone and metalwork, the effect of Christianisation, and 16th century manuscripts illustrating the Icelandic Eddas. It continues with 19th century paintings and sculpture created in a period of Scandinavian romantic nationalism, the appropriation of mythological images by the N**i regime and more recent re-interpretations of Thor, Odin, Loki and the Valkyries in cartoons and Manga.

James Vaux is a researcher and lecturer specialising in Nordic arts, culture, design and history His talks focus on understanding art through its historic, cultural and political context. James aims to question conventional art world narratives about painters, designers and movements, to unveil the hidden forces that lie beneath great art.

James took a law degree at Oxford with First Class Honours and qualified as a solicitor before switching career. As a managing director of the international bank Rothschild, he advised governments and corporates worldwide. He set up and ran the bank’s Nordic operations, living and working in Scandinavia and immersing himself in the countries’ arts, culture and history. James then gained an MA (Distinction) at UCL in Language, Culture and History (Scandinavian Studies). His dissertation was on Swedish design, and he specialised in landscapes, the Viking Age, politics and literature.

He studied interior design and art history at the Inchbald School, Mid-Century Modern at Sotheby’s Institute and electronic music at Point Blank. He has also been a DJ, promoter, record label owner, hosted a local radio show for four years and ran a pop-up community cinema.

We are a friendly local society, enjoying all aspects of the arts. Our aim is to increase knowledge and enjoyment of the decorative and visual arts and broaden our acquaintance with people of similar interests.

If you wish to attend a lecture as a guest please contact us via the website contact form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the day.

In addition to lectures, visits are arranged to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings. Visits are at an additional cost to the annual membership fee of £55.

For full details of upcoming activities visit our website: http://www.theartssocietytringpark.org.uk

01/05/2026

Behind the Scenes: Curating the Museum with Anna Bianco on Wednesday 13 May, 10.30am at the Civic Centre in Berkhamsted.

How long does it take to put together a major exhibition? Who decides what subjects will be explored and which objects will be included? How do you get an object from the Vatican to the British Museum? This lecture offers a behind the scenes insight into the process and drama of putting together a ‘blockbuster’ exhibition. Drawing on her experiences at the Wallace Collection, Courtauld Institute, The British Museum and her own gallery, Anna will share the trials, tribulations and joys of getting from the idea to the opening night. Behind the Scenes offers members a chance to discover a range of practicalities from packing crates, climate control and even insurance that open the door on to the inner workings of a museum.

Anna Bianco is a freelance curator, writer, lecturer, tour guide and art historian. She has been an accredited lecturer of The Arts Society for 11 years. She has a BA History of Art and an MA in Curating from the Courtauld Institute of Art. She has curated exhibitions and displays at The Wallace Collection, The British Museum, The Embankment Galleries and The Southwark Art Collection. She was Director of the Tryon St. Gallery on the Kings Road, and was Associate Curator at Copperfield Gallery, Southwark. She was also Senior Curator for Faith at Auckland Castle in County Durham. She has been a guest lecturer for Christies Education, Durham University, London College of Communication and the Open University. She has also been a tour guide for Context Travel across London. She focuses her work on the medieval and renaissance periods but Anna takes most enjoyment from helping everyone to discover the stories behind art works and museum objects.

We are a friendly local society, enjoying all aspects of the arts. Our aim is to increase knowledge and enjoyment of the decorative and visual arts and broaden our acquaintance with people of similar interests.

If you wish to attend a lecture as a guest please contact us via the website contact form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the day.

In addition to lectures, visits are arranged to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings. Visits are at an additional cost to the annual membership fee of £55.

For full details of upcoming activities visit our website: https://theartssocietytringpark.org.uk/

The Arts Society Tring Park

27/03/2026

A Celebration of Nature: Antoni Gaudi and other Catalan Architects by Dr Jacqueline Cockburn on
Wednesday 8 April 2026:

This lecture shows how Antoni Gaudi engaged with nature in the most innovative and extraordinary ways in his architecture in Barcelona. Inspired by honeycombs and spiders’ webs, armadillo skins and mushrooms, trees and whales’ bellies, he worked with extraordinary ceramicists, iron workers, tilers and decorative artists. However, it will also be the aim of this lecture to uncover two of the other architects working in Barcelona over the turn of the twentieth century; Domenech y Montaner and Puig y Cadafalch.

We are a friendly local society, enjoying all aspects of the arts. Our aim is to increase our knowledge and enjoyment of the decorative and visual arts and broaden our acquaintance with people of similar interests.

If you wish to attend as a guest please contact us via the website Contact Form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the door.

Each year we arrange several exciting visits to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings.

Additional details of forthcoming activities can be found under ‘Programme of Lectures and Visits’ on the website: http://www.theartssocietytringpark.org.uk [The cost of visits are in addition to the Membership fee of £55 p.a.]

We meet at Berkhamsted Civic Centre on the second Wednesday of the month at 10:30a.m.

03/03/2026

How to get Down from a Yak: Adventures in Central Asian Nomadic Textiles with Chris Aslan on Wednesday 11 March 2026.

Houses made from wool that warm in the depths of winter, carpets that tell stories, woven bands that appease ancestors, embroideries that ward off evil, and kilims that store kitchenware, with everything ready to be packed and carried on yak, or camel at a moment’s notice; the little-known nomadic textile cultures of the Kyrgyz, Turkoman and Karakalpak are explored in this lecture, along with the rise and fall of nomadism and where nomadism fits within the modern world. Chris also shares his own experience of working with nomadic yak herders in the High Pamirs for three years.

We are a friendly local society, enjoying all aspects of the arts. Our aim is to increase our knowledge and enjoyment of the decorative and visual arts and broaden our acquaintance with people of similar interests.

If you wish to attend as a guest please contact us via the website Contact Form. There is a charge of £8 payable by cheque or cash on the door.

Each year we arrange several exciting visits to places of cultural significance. These include buildings of architectural or historical interest, gardens, art galleries and museums, some of which may only be available for group bookings.

Additional details of forthcoming activities can be found under ‘Programme of Lectures and Visits’ on the website: http://www.theartssocietytringpark.org.uk [The cost of visits are in addition to the Membership fee of £55 p.a.]

We meet at Berkhamsted Civic Centre on the second Wednesday of the month at 10:30a.m.