News

A day of low cloud and drizzle did not deter 53 members from enjoying our outing to Highclere Castle, near Newbury, and Sandham Memorial Chapel. More photos from the visit can be seen here though outside only as no interior photography is allowed at either venue. Well-known from the TV series Downton Abbey, but actually home to the Earl of Carnarvon, there was much to ...

More than 40 of us were fortunate to have a sunny if cold day for our trip to London, with good journeys both ways and some lovely views over the Thames in central London. We spent the morning at Two Temple Place, a little known late Victorian mansion overlooking the Victoria Embankment. It was commissioned in the 1890s by William Waldorf Astor, then perhaps the ...

In this month’s captivating lecture, Anthony Russell revealed so much of what has been discovered about Tutankhamun while exemplifying the problems faced when trying to interpret the past. By the time he became Pharaoh in 1333BC, Egypt had been a great power for more than a 1000 years. The River Nile gave fertile land and was easily navigable in both directions, facilitating trade, especially in ...

Frequently our lectures give an invaluable background to forthcoming visits. This was certainly true for our first meeting of 2018 when Ann Clements gave us a brilliant exploration of the range of Klimt’s work and the evolution of his style. Born in July 1862 into a relatively poor family, at 14 he went to the Vienna School of Arts and Crafts where the emphasis was ...

Following the success of last year’s Christmas lunch at Waverley Abbey House, The Arts Society Grayshott repeated the event this December. If the audible buzz of appreciation was anything to go by then this year’s lunch was even more enjoyable. For those of you who missed the occasion, Waverley Abbey House is a Georgian house boasting stunning architecture with natural light, views across  to the Waverley ...

There were no prizes for guessing the focus of this month’s festive lecture! Jane Tapley revealed the fascinating story of how Pantomime developed out of its Greek origins to become the peculiarly British institution of today. She highlighted the crucial role pantomime plays in keeping local theatres open and asked to what other entertainment could you take both a 95 year old and a 5 ...

Based in Bologna for five nights, we had a most enjoyable tour, taking in Bologna, Ferrara, Ravenna, Parma and Mantua.  Few of us had been to this region of Italy before and yet it is home to towns and cities with mediaeval hearts that are a delight to stroll round and which house some really marvellous works of art; all without being overrun by tourists, ...

Undeterred by a wet start to the day, 46 members and guests turned out for our visit to The Seats of Power - the Palace of Westminster, incorporating the Houses of Parliament, and the Supreme Court, appropriately facing each other on either side of Parliament Square. The traffic gods favoured us for once and our coach got us to London in record time. Dividing into ...

French Impressionist Painters in England At our first meeting after the summer break, Nicholas Reed gave, what for many of us, was a revelatory insight into the work of Camille Pissarro and his children. Indeed seventeen artists, over three generations, were descended from him. Nicholas began by explaining the events that brought Camille to England in 1870. Having been born in St Thomas in the ...

As a follow up to April’s talk on Gertrude Jekyll and Edwin Lutyens, we arranged a visit to see the gardens at Gertude Jekyll’s home near Godalming – Munstead Wood. This was one of the first of over 100 collaborations by what became the famous partnership of Jekyll and Lutyens.  The gardens in fact pre-date the house by some 13 years.  In 1883 Jekyll was ...

Pashley Manor Gardens and Great Dixter We were fortunate to be blessed with a lovely warm and sunny day for our visit to two great gardens on the borders of Kent and Sussex. First stop was at Pashley Manor, a beautiful old house dating back originally to Tudor times, with later Georgian changes and additions. The owner, Mr Sellick, treated us to an informative and ...

At an Extraordinary General Meeting on 1st June 2017 the membership of Grayshott DFAS approved a resolution to proceed with a change in name of the society from 1st August 2017. From that date the society will be known as The Arts Society Grayshott. This brings the naming of the society in line with the renaming of NADFAS to The Arts Society that took place ...