Lecture Programme 2012
24 January
Charlotte Gere and Judy Rudoe
Why is jewellery funny ? Humour, satire and mockery in the Victorian illustrated press.
This lecture looks in depth at one of the themes in the speakers’ recent book ‘Jewellery in the age of Queen Victoria: a mirror to the world’ (winner of the 2011 William M.B. Berger prize for British Art History). Many funny cartoons and punning jewels with jokey messages were included the book. This lecture takes the subject forward by examining how the approach to humour changed over decades from the 1840s onwards, as seen through the pages of Punch magazine. Hilarious images and biting verbal satire demonstrate the use of jewellery to underscore social and political comment, adding another dimension to the role of jewellery in the cultural life of the period.
28 February
Mark Emanuel
The Serjeants at Law and their rings.
For nearly 500 years the highest rank of barrister was the Serjeant at Law. Elevation to the dignity of Serjeant was marked by days of feasting, and by the candidates ‘giving gold’ in the form of rings. The best estimate is that over the centuries between one half and one tonne of gold was manufactured into rings. The rank of Serjeant disappeared at the end of the nineteenth century and, along with them, vanished most of their rings. This lecture aims to look at some of the 92 rings that are known to have survived, spanning some 400 years, and the thousands that have not.
24 April
Melanie Eddy
Clerkenwell to Kabul: a London Jeweller unearths pure pedagogical gold in Afghanistan.
In the autumn of 2010 Melanie undertook, with the support of the British Council, a two-month applied arts creative residency focusing on jewellery design at Turquoise Mountain’s Institute for Afghan Arts and Architecture in Kabul, Afghanistan and has maintained a relationship with the Institute since. Turquoise Mountain has brought together individuals who have an impressive breadth of knowledge and has provided a nurturing environment from which a new generation of craft persons can emerge. This lecture will focus on the unique community that has developed around this organisation and Melanie’s experiences of the rejuvenation of a rich artistic culture despite the challenges of time and place.
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