What Gardening , Sex , & Fans Have in Common BY MARINELL HAEGELIN
Have I perhaps aroused your curiosity ? The answer is simple and obvious for some club members , because its source has been in Hamburg since 1987 . Once known by the hefty acronym BRIDFAS ( British Decorative & Fine Arts Society ), with over 410 societies worldwide , a few years ago the London-based society did a complete rebranding , updating to The Arts Society Hamburg . The multifariousness of its programs this year alone has provided continual and diverse enjoyment . Also , subsequent to COVID-19 ’ s exceptional restrictions , two in-person events took place : “ The Age of Jazz ” in April , and “ The Gate of Heroes – on the China Trail ” in June .
“
It is the best possible sign of a color when nobody who sees it knows what to call it .”
– John Ruskin , 1859
Not a gardener , nevertheless when I read the lecture title “ The Subtle Science and Exact Art of Color in English Garden Design — Why Gardening Can Rank as a Fine Art ,” I was curious . And then rewarded , as Timothy Walker regaled yet combined gardening choices with history , the arts , and sciences within an educative and inviting lecture . The lively presentation ’ s composition of six components , from “ Color Is Beguiling ” to “ Harmony & Contrast ,” encompassed visuals of southern Argentinian cave paintings ( 11,000-7,000 BCE ) professional cyclists , 1956 haute couture , and Giotto ’ s frescoes at Padua ( 1305 ). Pantone colors compared with fine artists ’ palettes , plus lots of images of diverse gardens rounded out the one-hour Zoom lecture .
The tantalizing title “ Sex and the City – Hogarth and Eighteenth Century London ” was fulfilled by Julia Musgrave ’ s lecture regarding the English painter and engraver William Hogarth ( 1697-1764 ). Her copious information on Hogarth ’ s work as painter and printmaker flowed . As Musgrave attentively pointed out details rich with hidden meanings and clues , her engrossing explanations combined insight and dry wit , together with humorous references to customs of that period , adding to my enjoyment in listening and learning something new . Clearly “ ladies of the night ” have been around since Eve , but in the future , looking at artworks , I will not be clueless about those little “ dots ” on personages and those of less repute .
“ Treasures of The Fan Museum ,” the UK ’ s only museum dedicated to fans , was particularly fascinating since Jacob Moss was its curator for over a decade . Moss quite impressively used every minute to amusingly inform and educate his Zoom audience about the long ( circa 1325 BCE , Egypt ) and varied history of handheld fans down through the centuries . Nestled in historic Greenwich , its founder and director , Hélène Alexander MBE , avidly collected fans before opening the museum ; HRH The Duchess of Cornwall is its patron . Moss ’ s 2017 curated groundbreaking project “ Street Fans ” joined street art to fan-making and was tremendously successful for the museum . As well , afterward the Q & A provided more details and fun facts .
“
The fan has a thousand admirable qualities , and may justly be entitled one of the noblest inventions of the human mind .”
– The Grand Magazine London , November 1760