Join Curator Dr Susanne Turner on this virtual tour of the Museum of Classical Archaeology's Cast Gallery.
The Museum houses a rather unusual exception: instead of original statues, the Cast Gallery is packed with more than 600 historical plaster casts of Greek and Roman sculptures. But why do we have all these replicas? And how might thinking about copying help us to look differently at ancient sculpture?
How and why does classical antiquity live on in us and in our worlds?
Join us online for poetry readings by Lesley Saunders and Josephine Balmer, framed by the evocative surroundings of our gallery of classical casts.
Their performance responds to the idea expressed by the classical scholar Edmund Richardson that ‘we work with fragments, we work with dreams, we work with the longing for lost texts to be discovered, for every broken thing to be repaired…’
This series of online events, Grassroots: Artmaking and Political Struggle, explores relationships between art, activism and political organising in Britain during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Across six panels over three days, speakers will take a number of different approaches to thinking about how art works and visual culture both interrelate with, and have acted as, catalysts for social change.
Take your hand sewing skills further with this traditional Dresden plate ‘chrysanthemum’ block. In the first of two classes you will learn to use English paper piecing and applique to create the flower shape of the block. You will also be taught how to use a hand applique technique to apply the plate to the top of the placemat. You will be asked to complete this as ‘homework’ before the next session. The tutor will be available by email during the week to provide support if needed.
This virtual workshop will introduce you to the weird and wonderful world of spices. We’ll take you on a journey to far flung places to find out where our familiar and not so familiar spices come from. We’ll explore the different plants and plant families they come from and learn a bit about their history. What’s the difference between herbs and spices? How do spices pack such a punch of flavour? What’s the best way to use and store your spices at home? Which spices are easy to grow for yourself? Find out these ans
From poisonous plants to poison gardens, gothic garden murder mysteries, and tragic tales of plant hunters, the garden is full of fatalities. In the midst of the hum and buzz of garden life we are stalked by dangers and beset with metaphors of momento mori. A Garden of Eden replete with serpent and wolfsbane. Taking inspiration from horticulture, history and literature we will explore the ways in which gardens and plants can literally be a “fatal attraction”. You may never dare to go into your garden again!
2021 has been declared the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables by the United Nations. Promoting the contribution of fruits and vegetables to diversified, balanced and healthy diets and lifestyles is amongst its aims. This course will explore the chemistry and botany of the main “edible” plant families that contribute fruits and vegetables to the human diet. We will examine the chemistry behind the superfood headlines, discover how plants can be used as crop protection agents and reveal the chemical truth of urban legends such as “green potatoes are poisonous”.
Nowhere in Britain has been shaped by humans as much as Fenland.
Colour in plants is of great cultural importance, influencing many areas of human endeavour including horticulture, art, and gastronomy. Colour also plays a vital role in the biology of plants by absorbing harmful radiation from the sun, capturing light to drive photosynthesis and signalling the availability of flowers and fruit.
