About the Talk
For forty thousand years, we have been carving and moulding, shaping and chiselling, feeling our way and sensing our place in the world through sculpture. In this accessible, story-led talk, renowned art historian and curator Jo Baring explores creativity, memory and why humanity has been drawn to this medium since the very beginning.
She examines sculptures ranging from the prehistoric Lion Man figure found in a German cave, to an ancient Mayan pyramid that conjures a serpent made of shadows, to icons of the Italian Renaissance such as Michelangelo's Pietà. Along the way, we encounter the work of twentieth-century and contemporary giants in a fresh light — including the great women sculptors Barbara Hepworth, Louise Bourgeois, Yayoi Kusama and Julie Brook.
Lyrical and beautifully illustrated, Totem is a celebration of art, of those who create it, and of those it means something to.
About the Speaker
Jo Baring is Director of the Ingram Collection of Modern British & Contemporary Art, and in 2016 established the Ingram Prize, whose alumni have gone on to Turner Prize nominations and acquisitions by the Tate and Government Art Collection. In 2023, she was elected Frankland Visitor to Brasenose College, Oxford.
Jo curates exhibitions widely and co-hosts the podcast Sculpting Lives, named The Guardian's Podcast of the Week and praised by The Times, the Royal Academy and the Evening Standard. She has given talks at Oxford and Cambridge, the Tate, the Royal Academy and the Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan, judged prizes including the ING Discerning Eye, has written and presented films for Heni Talks, and appeared as a featured expert on the BBC's Fake or Fortune.
Standard Info
Doors open at 2pm talk starts at 2.15pm Tickets £8.50 including teas and coffees.