Spotlight Tours – Summer 2024
Spotlight Tours include tea and cake in the Terrace Cafe, followed by a tailored tour of the Living Area.
Refreshments served from 10.30am, with tour starting at 11.00am
Total cost, including the tour and refreshments, is £6
Numbers are limited and booking essential
New dates announced
Following a sell-out run earlier this year, our Spotlight Tours return for the summer. Our enthusiastic and knowledgeable volunteer guides will meet you in The Terrace cafe for coffee and cake before beginning the tour. Each tour will highlight one aspect of the Sainsbury Centre collection, be it artist, region or medium. Come along to learn of the stories behind our objects and discover unexpected connections between works.
Meet in The Terrace cafe at 10.30am for refreshments. Tours begin at 11.00am. Tickets £6, numbers limited, prebooking essential.
Please note that these tours are repeats previously sold out tours.
Spotlight Tours – Summer Season
Thursday 4 July (SOLD OUT)
Henry Moore
The 20th century British artist who became a worldwide celebrity
British WW2 “National Treasure”, media celebrity and global superstar, Moore is internationally renowned for his semi-abstract bronzes, but also considered approachable and unpretentious, a down to earth hard-working Yorkshireman. Explore his life and legacy, artistic practice and personal connection to the Sainsbury Centre.
Volunteer guide: Bo Davis
Wednesday 10 July
‘Salut les Copains!’
The avante-garde artists of Montmartre and Montparnasse
Many of the art works in the Sainsbury Centre are by 20th century artists who lived in Paris. They participated in an intense and innovative era of creativity. We will look at works by Picasso, Modigliani, Zadkine, Giacometti and others, and discuss the connections, friendships and rivalries between them.
Volunteer guide: Polly Gould
Wednesday 17 July
Viva España
An exploration of Spanish art in the Sainsbury Centre collection
Spain has a rich artistic history with names including Goya, Velasquez and Zurbarán. The Sainsbury Collection extends this history into the 20th century with works by Picasso, Saura, Millares, Gargallo and Chillida. Not all work is permanently displayed, but examples will illustrate the development of Spanish art during the Franco regime.
Volunteer guide: David Levy
Tuesday 30 July
Jacob Epstein
New York, Paris, London
Friend of Robert and Lisa Sainsbury and the most reviled modernist sculptor in London. Hear about his friendship with the Sainsburys, his ‘shocking’ sculptures, the inspiration of indigenous art and his liaison with Isabel Rawsthorne.
Volunteer guides: Chris Jones and Bo Davis
Tuesday 6 August
Modern Figures
How do we observe the human form?
A look at how ‘modern’ artists broke away from the conventional, classical norm of portraying the human figure. How did they look and see? If we want to draw the figure, what can we learn from artists such as Giacometti, Moore, Leonora Carrington and F. E. McWilliam?
Volunteer guide: Linda Chapman
Tuesday 13 August
Alive and Kicking!
What is it about contemporary artists that makes us sit up and take notice?
Celebrating contemporary artists working today and artworks dating from the 1960s to the present day, with some artists having careers spanning decades and others newly establishing their place in the art world. Through close looking at paintings, relief and sculpture; discover how artists reach their audiences and sustain that connection.
Volunteer guide: Jenni Brace
Friday 16 August
The Life and Legacy of Elisabeth Frink
One of the greatest 20th century sculptors
Which works have been gifted to the Sainsbury Collection and what is their life story? How was Frink affected by her war-time childhood experiences? How did she approach her work? Who were her friends and influencers and what do we value most in her sculptures?
Volunteer guides: Jolyon Gough and Georgie Livingstone
Tuesday 20 August
Viva España
An exploration of Spanish art in the Sainsbury Centre collection
Spain has a rich artistic history with names including Goya, Velasquez and Zurbarán. The Sainsbury Collection extends this history into the 20th century with works by Picasso, Saura, Millares, Gargallo and Chillida. Not all work is permanently displayed, but examples will illustrate the development of Spanish art during the Franco regime.
Volunteer guide: David Levy
Thursday 29 August
Francis Bacon
Marmite and Paint
Love him or hate him, Francis Bacon was controversial in his practice and lifestyle. He polarised opinion with images full of emotion and ambiguity. Robert Sainsbury remarked, “It’s not the business of portraits to look like people, but to be an exciting arrangement of form and colour.”
Volunteer guides: Andy Maule and Cathy Merry