In a discussion chaired by the RA’s Tim Marlow, Anselm Kiefer and David Chipperfield RA explore the ways in which art and architecture interact in Kiefer’s practice. Watch the video: http://bit.ly/1T3ToOQ

Anselm Kiefer in conversation with David Chipperfield

Painter and Royal Academician Frank Bowling discusses his life and work with Mel Gooding (Art critic and author of the Royal Academy’s monograph on Frank Bowling) and Courtney J. Martin (Assistant Professor of History of Art & Architecture at Brown University and Specialist in 20th Century British Art).

In conversation with Frank Bowling RA

Rubens, with his “audacious and fantastic palette”, provided an important model for the revolutions in mid-19th century French art. In this lecture, independent art historian and curator MaryAnne Stevens explores the impact of the great Flemish master’s colour and technique on Manet, and Impressionists such as Monet, Renoir and Cézanne.

Rubens and the Impressionists

Dutch practice MVRDV – of which Maas is the “M” – has an international reputation for its consistently innovative and visually striking architecture. In this talk, founder Winy Maas discusses the practice’s work, focusing on their numerous housing projects, which include the recently completed Markthal in Rotterdam. He also teaches at a number of universities across the world and is director of the Why Factory, a research institute for the future city which he founded in 2008.

Maas challenges us to “escape from some of the hermeticism” that our national housing crisis is facing. His attack comes on three fronts: from architecture, to urbanism, to research. A lively and witty speaker, Maas shares entertaining personal stories as he tackles the very serious problem of the future of housing.

Photo: Winy Maas © Boudewijn Bollmann

The Future of Housing: Winy Maas addresses the key isses

Coinciding with the publication of Catherine Lampert’s ‘Frank Auerbach: Speaking and Painting’, Tim Marlow talks to the painter. In a conversation that spans the artist’s relentless work ethic, his thoughts on John Constable and his relationship with Lucian Freud, Auerbach offers a window into his studio and practice. Honest and uncompromising, he reveals himself as intensely self-critical, trying not to look back, forever running to keep up with what he calls painting’s “inner engine”.

Frank Auerbach in conversation with Tim Marlow

Peter Blake is recognised as one of the founders of British Pop Art and today continues to make work that spans media including collage, sculpture, printmaking, as well as commercial art in the form of graphics and, notably, album covers. He was recently included in the Barbican’s exhibition 'Magnificent Obsessions: The Artist as Collector' and has created an artistic style that undoubtedly parallels Joseph Cornell’s own.

During this event we find out why Cornell’s work has made such an impact on Blake’s own approach to art and what motivated him to create a series of direct homages to work by Joseph Cornell.

Peter Blake in conversation with Tim Marlow

Curator Edith Devaney introduces David Hockney’s portrait exhibition, giving an insight into this remarkable series of work and Hockney’s relationship with portraiture as well as her experiences of being one of Hockney’s subjects.

An introduction to David Hockney

Curator Edith Devaney introduces the ‘Abstract Expressionism’ exhibition and examines the key concepts behind this artistic phenomenon.

From the moment that it first emerged in the late 1940s, Abstract Expressionism has been a subject of debate. Although perceived to be a unified movement, in reality it was a much more complex and fluid phenomenon. The Abstract Expressionists broke fresh ground with their attitudes towards scale, colour and composition. Artists like Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Willem de Kooning challenged accepted conventions to unleash a new confidence in painting.

Introduction to 'Abstract Expressionism' with Edith Devaney

Today, although its monuments are vanishing, Brutalism enjoys a ghostly afterlife. Following decades of official and public contempt, its rehabilitation began when concrete tower blocks featured prominently in 1990s music videos by Britpop groups such as Blur and Suede. This revival continued in mid-2000s blogs by writers such as Owen Hatherley, and today it flourishes in Instagram accounts, soft furnishings, art galleries and coffee-table books.

Meanwhile the buildings themselves have become hot property, changing hands for sums that are far beyond the means of their intended inhabitants. What are the causes of this strange resurgence in Brutalism’s popularity? Is it simply nostalgia, or does it represent a form of opposition to the politics that caused the demolition of so many of its exemplars?

Why does Brutalism seem so at home in new media that are the very opposite of its material ideals? Are its fans interested in the ethic or just the aesthetic, to appropriate the terms that Reyner Banham used to interrogate Brutalism in the 1950s? If it’s the latter, what does this fetishism tell us about our current situation?

Concrete fetishes: the ghost of Brutalism's radical social agenda

The two major artists discuss their approach to painting, their inspiration and the continuing evolution of their work, in a conversation chaired by our Artistic Director, Tim Marlow.

Painters Brice Marden and Gary Hume in conversation

“A portrait,” Matisse said, “is a quarrel.”

His long, laborious studio sessions were intense sites of contestation between physical resemblance and what Matisse understood to be the more lasting, essential character of the person he was portraying. Such sessions frequently resulted in portraits that did not please their subjects.

Art historian and co-curator of 'Matisse in the Studio', Ellen McBreen explores how specific objects from the artist's personal collection – a Yoruba mask, a Buddha bust, and a medieval head – provided alternative models for the visual expression of individuality and identity. 

roy.ac/matisse

Matisse's portraits: a talk with co-curator Ellen McBreen

Catch up on this event from the Benjamin West Lecture Theatre: Antony Gormley RA and the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, debate the rich and intriguing relationship between theology and contemporary visual art.

Antony Gormley RA and Rowan Williams in conversation

Celebrated photojournalist Don McCullin describes his experiences of war, poverty and suffering across the world during his 50-year career. Part of the Festival of Ideas programme, McCullin talks of sacrifices and consequences that have resulted from his commitment to the camera. 

Come to the next Festival of Ideas live in the RA's Benjamin West Lecture Theatre – line-up coming soon: https://roy.ac/FOI2019

Find out more

Don McCullin on war and poverty seen through a camera lens

In a lecture at the RA's first Festival of Ideas, author and historian David Cannadine reveals how Sir Winston Churchill’s passion for art went beyond that of a private hobby, forming an essential part of his public persona. 

Look out for details of the next Festival of Ideas, coming soon: https://roy.ac/FOI2019

David Cannadine on Churchill and art

The legendary British portrait photographer David Bailey joins RA Artistic Director Tim Marlow to share how he fell in love with Picasso, life in fashion and the arts – “it’s terrible” – and his approach to models and portraiture.

Come to the next Festival of Ideas live in the RA's Benjamin West Lecture Theatre – line-up coming soon: https://roy.ac/FOI2019

David Bailey on Picasso, portaits and where you put the camera

Catch up on this event with renowned artist Phyllida Barlow CBE RA discussing her practice, career and current exhibition at the RA with contemporary art critic, Gilda Williams.

For more than 50 years, Phyllida Barlow has taken inspiration from her surroundings to create imposing installations. She creates anti-monumental sculptures from inexpensive, low-grade materials such as cardboard, fabric, plywood, polystyrene, scrim and cement. The seams of their construction are left at times visible, revealing the means of their making. The audience is challenged into a new relationship with the sculptural object, the gallery environment and the world beyond.

Phyllida Barlow in conversation with art critic Gilda Williams

Poetic and unflinching, Clio Barnard’s films explore the beauty and terror in rural English landscapes. Honing in on the lives and hardships of working-class Englanders, her films offer an unblinking account of life on the margins.
 
In this interview with Matthew Sweet, she discusses her recent film, Dark River (2017), alongside The Selfish Giant (2013), which developed from her experimental documentary, The Arbor (2010), based on Bradford playwright, Andrea Dunbar.

Clio Barnard on the ethical minefield of making documentaries

Celebrated author, poet and broadcaster, Michael Rosen joins writer and broadcaster Sarah Crompton at the RA’s Festival of Ideas, to discuss the limitations of testing and the suppression of an individual’s interpretation in schools today.

Michael Rosen on the systems squeezing creativity out of education

Between them, Cressida Cowell and Chris Riddell have created some of the most iconic characters in children’s literature. In this conversation from our 2019 Festival of Ideas, the talented storytellers discuss how images and words can work together, and how to stoke the fires of creativity – from making space for accidents, to the importance of a “naughty drawer”.

Cressida Cowell and Chris Riddell’s storytelling secrets

World renowned designer Sir Paul Smith discusses his humble beginnings, what inspires him, and the lessons he's learnt throughout his career.

Paul Smith: finding inspiration in the everyday and the extraordinary

World-famous dancer, choreographer and composer, Hofesh Shechter, discusses his life and career – and why indifference is the worst possible response to his work.

Hofesh Shechter: "Dance changed my life"

Actor, writer, comedian and presenter, Michael Palin explores the life and work of under-appreciated artists with journalist and broadcaster, Martha Kearney.

Michael Palin on bringing forgotten artists onto our screens

Catch up on this conversation with the artist behind this year’s Summer Exhibition courtyard installation, Thomas Houseago, and the show's curator Edith Devaney.

Ranging from monumental to smaller-scale works, Houseago’s sculptures simultaneously convey states of power and vulnerability. He uses mediums traditionally associated with classical and modernist sculpture – including carved wood, clay, plaster and bronze – as well as less traditional materials like rebar (reinforcing steel bars) and hemp.

In conversation with Thomas Houseago

Catch up on this conversation between Peter Blake and the Director of London Original Print Fair, Helen Rosslyn. They discuss Blake’s new project 'Ways of Making', which investigates the diversity and range of processes at the disposal of an artist.

Recognised as one of the founders of British Pop Art, painter and printmaker Sir Peter Blake is renowned for his connection with the music industry, having created iconic album covers for the Beatles, Paul Weller, The Who, and Oasis.

An artist's many tools: Peter Blake in conversation

Mali Morris discusses her latest exhibition and display at the RA, as well as her career and practice, with author and poet Martha Kapos.

Acclaimed artist Mali Morris RA focuses on the expressive possibilities of abstract painting. Her work draws on many sources but constantly explores how colour can structure light and space.

Mali Morris in conversation with Martha Kapos

Catch up with this panel discussion featuring political satirist Steve Bell, artist Bedwyr Williams and artist duo John Wood and Paul Harrison as they explore humour and satire in art, discussing how it's impacted today’s contemporary art world.

Making a mockery: exploring humour and satire in art

As part of our 'When Science Meers Art' series Mathematician Professor Marcus du Sautoy OBE FRS, artist Conrad Shawcross RA and BBC presenter Samira Ahmed discuss how experimentation, curiosity and creative thinking are central to both science and sculpture. Download slides from this lecture: https://roy.ac/gh4d4

Marcus Du Sautoy & Conrad Shawcross RA in conversation

Artist and singer/songwriter Michael Stipe talks about his life-long passion for photography and its potential to produce a defining image of our times.

Michael Stipe In Conversation

Our panel, chaired by art critic, writer & curator, Sacha Craddock, and including Alistair Hudson, Director of the Whitworth and Mariam Zulfiqar, Deputy Director and Chief Curator at UP Projects, questions where sculpture is best exhibited and what impact sculptures have on the spaces they are presented in. Do sculptures act as catalysts for social change and can people connect better with a place when it contains a work of art?

Part of 'Where language ends: Antony Gormley’s discourse series'.

What is sculpture good for?

Antony Gormley discusses his career spanning over 40 years and explores how his series of installations within the RA’s Main Galleries encouraged visitors to slow down and become aware of their own bodies and environment.

Part of 'Where language ends: Antony Gormley’s discourse series'.

Anthony Gormley in conversation with Director of the Whitechapel Gallery, Iwona Blazwick

Theoretical astrophysicist, Priya Natarajan, joins Semiconductor, the artist duo Ruth Jarman and Joe Gerhardt, to discuss how artists contribute to our understanding of the world around and the relationship between physics, cosmology and art.

Part of 'Where language ends: Antony Gormley’s discourse series'.

Understanding space through art

Anthropologist and director of the documentary 'Inside Australia', Hugh Brody discusses how geology, anthropology and humankind’s connection with the land are represented in Gormley’s work.

Hugh Brody on his documentary 'Inside Australia' and the work of Antony Gormley

Recorded during our exhibition Lucien Freud: The Self-portraits, Tracey Emin CBE RA and David Dawson(Lucien Freud's assistant and model) discuss their memories of the artist, as well as Emin and Freud’s shared ability to innovate, provoke and soul-search.

Tracy Emin and David Dawson In Conversation

Subscribe for art and ideas. We host conversations with artists, architects and other leading creatives – and we've just posted podcasts from recent Festival of Ideas. Enjoy.

Popular tracks by Royal Academy of Arts