The art of innovation: Impressionism and Post-Impressionism

Course delivery and schedule

This Weekend Course includes 7 x 90-minute sessions delivered between Friday evening and Sunday lunchtime with plenty of opportunity for further conversations and networking during breaks and mealtimes.

Course programme

Friday

Please plan to arrive at Madingley Hall between 16:30 and 18:30. You can meet other course participants in the Terrace Bar which opens at 18:15. Tea and coffee making facilities are available in the study bedrooms.

Saturday

Sunday

Aims:

The course will allow you to:

• become familiar with some innovative works by key 19th-century French
  modern painters
• develop visual analysis skills
• discuss your responses to the works in an informal and supportive environment

Summary of content:

Introducing works by key French avant-garde painters of the mid to late 19th century, this Weekend Course offers the opportunity to look at range of works in a variety of media including oil, watercolours, pastels, drawings and photography. Discussion topics will include key Impressionist and Post-Impressionist works, as well as less well-known examples, to reveal innovations and experimentation which significantly contributed to the development of modern art.

Our first session on ‘Early Impressionism and new ways of seeing’ will introduce the context in which early Impressionism emerged. As well as considering the established artworld in Paris, we will also look at the invention of the camera.

Our second session on ‘Continuity and change in the work of Renoir' will look at Impressionist works by Renoir which specifically make connections with art of the past, whilst simultaneously appearing modern and experimental. What would be the appeal of historical art for a modern painter?

Our third session will consider Berthe Morisot as an exceptional artist, not only because she became successful at a time when the artworld was heavily skewed in the favour of male artists. We will look closely to see how her work is amongst the most audacious produced by any of the Impressionist painters.

In our fourth session, we will consider a small selection of works by Degas and Cassatt which convey immediacy and prompt our contemplation. Comparing and contrasting their works, we will discuss how certain examples might be seen as visual conversations between the two artists.

Our session on ‘Caillebotte and urban spaces’ will focus on some of the fascinating images that artist made of Paris. What do his enigmatic works convey, potentially, about life in the modern city? We will also question the usefulness of labels such as ‘Impressionism’ when looking at work by artists like Caillebotte who do not fit easily into restrictive categories.

Moving to Post-Impressionism, we will discuss Toulouse-Lautrec and Van Gogh, to discover how both artists’ works, in different ways, depart from some of the aspects we have discussed so far. We will investigate Lautrec’s images of Montmartre entertainers in pastel, oil paint and posters. What do they disclose about celebrity culture? And how might Van Gogh’s paintings in Paris reveal new-found inspiration?

Our final session looks back to the themes we have discussed during the weekend, and to round off, we will briefly consider the legacy of these outstanding 19th-century Impressionists and Post-Impressionist artists.

Presentation of the course:

The course will involve illustrated lectures, group interaction and close looking at some of the key paintings of the period.

As a result of the course, within the constraints of the time available, you should be able to:

• recognise some of the characteristics of 19th century, avant-garde French paintings
• employ visual analysis skills when looking at a 19th-century French painting
• recognise the characteristics of different media including oil, watercolours, pastels and drawings
• compare and contrast works at an introductory level

Course materials:

Course materials include the course syllabus, detailed timetable, reading list and tutor biography. Once these materials are available, you can download them from the Documents section below. 

We will also email these to you before your course starts. Please check your spam folder if you have not received them.

Please note that our weekend courses are non-credit bearing and there is no formal assessment.

About Madingley Hall 

This weekend course takes place at Madingley Hall, home to the University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education. Built in the 16th century, Madingley Hall is a Grade 1 listed building, and is set in eight acres of landscaped gardens designed in the 18th century by ‘Capability’ Brown. Madingley is just four miles from the centre of Cambridge, and only 60 minutes from London, with excellent links to London airports. 

As a student you will enjoy award-winning cuisine in our elegant Dining Hall and first-rate facilities in an atmospheric and inspiring setting. You can choose to stay at the Hall in comfortable en suite accommodation, or attend as a non-resident. 

Course delivery and format 

All courses follow a similar format: seven 1.5hr sessions delivered between Friday evening and Sunday lunchtime. The first course session takes place after dinner on Friday evening.   

There are four sessions on Saturday: two before lunch, one before dinner and one after dinner. There is a break on Saturday afternoon, just after lunch, offering time to rest, read, or explore Madingley Hall’s beautiful grounds. The final two sessions take place on Sunday morning, and the course finishes with lunch. 

Accommodation

Accommodation for those wishing to be resident is provided in single, double or twin study bedrooms, with views over the woods, garden and courtyard. 

Each room has internet access, a television and a direct-dial telephone, as well as tea- and coffee-making facilities and a safe for valuables. Rooms are all en suite and centrally heated. 

A lift gives access to two bedrooms adapted for wheelchair users, and all areas on the ground floor can be reached once inside the building.  If you would like us to make any special provision for your stay, please let us know when booking, and we will be happy to discuss your requirements. 

Non-student attendance 

Please note: accommodation spaces are limited and priority is given to course attendees. Non-residential places are available for those who live locally or who prefer to stay elsewhere. If space permits, non-student guests may accompany a course attendee for the weekend, paying the rate below for accommodation and meals.  

Fees 

Residential fees cover tuition, accommodation and meals from Friday dinner to Sunday lunch (a total of two breakfasts, two lunches, and two evening meals), as well as morning coffee and afternoon tea during teaching hours.  

Non-residential places are available for those who live locally or who prefer to stay elsewhere. Non-residential fees include tuition, lunches, evening meals, morning coffee and afternoon tea during teaching hours. (Non-residents wishing to purchase breakfast may do so on payment of the current rate to Reception before taking their meal.) 

* where rooms are shared by course attendees, ie, where a partner or family member is also enrolled on a weekend course.  

Extra nights 

If there is capacity, you can book to stay for the Sunday night after your course at the same weekend bed and breakfast rate. (Please note:  dinners are not provided on a Sunday evening.)   If you wish to arrive early (before Friday) you will need to make a separate booking with Madingley Hall. (Charges may differ.)  

Dietary requirements 

If you have any specific dietary requirements or allergies please indicate these when booking.  

Bursaries for teachers  

Our State School Teacher bursary offers 50% off tuition fees for any teacher with Qualified Teacher Status working in a UK state-funded school or further education institution.  

You will be asked to enter the name and contact details of the school when booking. 

Getting to Madingley Hall 

The Institute of Continuing Education is based at Madingley Hall (CB23 8AQ) in the village of Madingley, four miles west of Cambridge. It is easily accessible from the M11, A14 and A428. Other gateways include Cambridge Main Railway Station and London airports.   

If you are arriving in Cambridge by train you can take a taxi to Madingley Hall. Please contact Reception to book a taxi for your return journey.  

Parking 

Free on-site car parking is available and we have a small number of spaces close to the Hall entrance for Blue Badge holders. 

Booking a course 

To book a weekend course please click the Book Now button at the top of the course page. You will be taken to our secure bookings portal where you can set up an account using your email address, and pay for your course by credit or debit card. 

Payments 

Payment can be made by credit/debit card using our secure online booking system, unless otherwise arranged. You can either pay in full at the time of booking, or pay a 15% registration fee as a deposit; the balance will automatically be taken two weeks before the start of the course.  

Booking deadlines 

Bookings close 11 days before the start of the course. If your preferred course is full at the time of booking you can add yourself to a waiting list. You will be notified, by email, if a place becomes available. We recommend that you book early to avoid missing out. 

Booking terms and conditions 

Before booking your course, please ensure that you have read and understood our Booking terms and conditions.