Afternoon Talk: Expressionism in the Leicester Collection

Event Description

Image: ‘Behind the Church’ by Lyonel Feininger © DACS 2024

Celebrate 175 years of Leicester Museum & Art Gallery exploring key works in the collection with our afternoon talks.

To coincide with Tate Modern’s current exhibition Expressionists: Kandinsky, Münter and The Blue Rider, join David Antill for an afternoon talk and explore the remarkable German Expressionist collection at Leicester Museum & Art Gallery.

The items currently on display at the Tate from Leicester’s collection are ‘Behind the Church’, a 1916 oil painting by Lyonel Feininger, and ‘Wild Horses’, a 1912 woodcut postcard by Franz Marc. Also on display is ‘Animal from a Fable (Gazelle)’, a 1912 colour woodcut by Franz Marc, which is on long-term loan to Leicester Museums.

Many, if not most of the artists in this collection, were persecuted in pre-war Germany when thousands of their works were removed from public art galleries.

Described as ‘degenerate’ in 1930’s Germany, the artists in Leicester’s Collection represent the full spectrum of modernist art which is celebrated internationally today.

The talk will concentrate on examples of work on display at Leicester and why it is valued today. It will also describe the great breadth of artistic styles which fall under the umbrella of Expressionism as well as their humanist and political contexts.

David Antill has a Master’s degree in History of Art and in Law & Employment Relations. He has taught employment law, been a full-time national trade union official and a librarian in Staffordshire & Leicestershire County Libraries. Now retired from full-time teaching, he contributes to the art history programmes at the Attenborough Arts Centre and develops his research interests in Modernist art and in wood engraving.

Ticket Prices:

Adult (+16 years) £10
Concession (Over 60, Student, Art Society Members) £8
Child (16 or under) £6
Under 5's Free

Advance booking recommended. Capacity 60.

Customers who require assistance to attend Leicester Museum and Art Gallery events can apply for a free companion ticket. Please email the team at museums@leicester.gov.uk or call us during opening hours on 0116 225 4900 for more information.

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