Foreigners in London

3 October – 5 December 2017

Why did the aristocracy in London prefer foreign painters to native-born English ones? Why did foreigners come in the first place? What was their motivation and what was the impact of foreigners on English art and art practice? This course will trace foreign artists from the Tudors to the Neo-Classical looking at their origins and how they came to work in England. It will examine the contributions of Holbein, Gerrit van Honthorst, Marcus Gheeraerts the younger, Lucas and Susanna Horenbout, Isaac Oliver, Paulus van Somer, van Dyck, Peter Lely, Rubens and others. It will look at how these artists influenced the British School of painting and assess their legacy. It will also examine the impact of the Italian and Northern Renaissance on British painting, the mania for portrait paintings, the rise of miniature paintings, the use of engravings and the painting requirements of both royalty and politics. Finally, it will assess the position of the painter in London’s political landscape.