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This study day provides a general introduction to China, its paintings, decorative arts, topography, history, dynasties of emperors, philosophies and religion. We look in detail at classical scroll paintings, porcelains, jades, bronzes, silks and other decorative arts and consider the impact of mythology, gardens and mountains as decorative themes in Chinese art and design. 

We embark on a journey in lecture 1 to ancient China - a country in which exquisite bronze vessels and carved jades were revered, where tea-drinking began and where the fine skills of sericulture - the making of lustrous silks - were perfected. We look at the golden age of trade and connections with the outside world through the Silk Road. 

In lecture 2, we consider China's classical eras of the Song to the Ming Dynasties, a long period spanning hundreds of years during which time gardens were cultivated, gentlemen artists and connoisseurs wrote poetry, dreamed of mountain retreats and appreciated antiques. Elegant ceramics with tactile monochrome glazes were sought after by collectors, who also valued fine and austere hardwood furniture. During this time, the Imperial palace known as the Forbidden City in Beijing was built. 

In lecture 3, we turn from the grandeur of the Ming Dynasty, which ended in 1644, to the magnificence of the Qing Dynasty, which lasted until the abdication of China's Last Emperor in 1911. Whilst studying the delicate porcelains, silks and jade carving made for connoisseur emperors, we also look at the trade in tea and export art to the West, the disruption caused by the Opium Wars, the end of Empire and on to the turbulent history of China in the 20th Century.

Anne has been a lecturer and guide at the Victoria and Albert Museum for more than 20 years and also lectures extensively for organisations including the Arts Society, Sotheby's Institute, SOAS, The Foundation for International Education and for many private groups during their visits to London's museums. Since 2008, she has been a member of the London faculty of Eckerd College, Florida, teaching Art History. She was a lecturer for the British Museum and the Royal Collection Trust for 14 years, including 10 years guiding private tours of the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace. In 2013, she was invited by the British Council to lecture on William Morris for the British Higher School of Art and Design in Moscow. 

In her earlier career, after studying Modern History at Durham University, she trained and became a senior specialist in ceramics at the head offices in London of Christie's Fine Art auctioneers (1987-1995) and also Bonhams (1981-1986). From 1995 to 2002, she was resident in Shanghai, China and gave lectures on the history of the China trade and European Chinoiserie to the international community of diplomats and expatriates in Shanghai and Beijing. On returning to London in 2002, she worked on a short project cataloguing Chinese ceramics at Kensington Palace and became Hon Membership Secretary and Treasurer of the French Porcelain Society.

She is currently a member of the Heritage Advisory Panel for the Haworth Art Gallery in Accrington, Lancashire. 

Awards, Qualifications & Memberships:

Membership of ICOM (International Council of Museums), the Oriental Ceramics Society, the French Porcelain Society, the Furniture History Society.