The story of western European art - 13th C to 1700

Friday 28 February – The story of western European art from the 13th century to 1700 at the National Gallery

The National Gallery is the UK's prize collection of western European art. This tour will look at how artistic techniques, attitudes and aspirations developed, told through iconic examples of each artistic style.

We will follow the development of art from medieval altarpieces and British masterpieces like the Wilton Diptych, through the new techniques explored during the Renaissance that allowed artists to create more and more realistic paintings in the works of Jan van Eyck, Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Titian, Raphael and Holbein.

We will then explore 17th century history, landscape, portrait and genre paintings through the works of masters such as Rubens, Caravaggio, Velazquez, Claude, Rembrandt and Vermeer.

A previous tour in 2019 just about managed to cover the entire story of western art up to 1900, but was a bit of a rush (and a marathon for Caroline!). This tour will give you an overview of the story of art over this shorter innovative 400 year period.

Meet: at 17:45 for an 18:00 start at the National Gallery, Trafalgar Square, London, WC2N 5DN

Note: there are several entrances, so please use the right one! We will be meeting INSIDE the Getty entrance (to the right of the portico as you look at the gallery)

End: approx. 20:00 at the National Gallery.

Post-tour drinks: at Walkers of Whitehall on Craig’s Court, just off Whitehall (5 mins walk from the museum)

Numbers are limited to 20 people.  Registered members can invite one guest.

£12.50 for members

£13 for Guests

About your guide: 

Caroline Piper is a Downing College history graduate (1997) and a London Blue Badge Tourist Guide, the highest guiding qualification available.   She is passionate about history, literature, architecture, films and finding the “off the beaten track” London gems. You can find out more about her on her Piper Tours website http://pipertours.com where you can also find links to her Tripadvisor page, Facebook page and memberships of professional guiding bodies. She has led regular tours for the Society for 2 years.

*Only members of the Cambridge Society of London (and their guests) may book tickets - if you are not currently a member and would like to beome one, please visit www.camsoclon.org

Cambridge Society of London Transfer and Refund Policy 

i) At least 14 calendar days before the event: We will provide full refunds (minus the mandatory Eventbrite fee). Alternatively, if you have found a suitable replacement, we can change the name on the ticket on the understanding that you will reclaim the ticket price from them separately.

ii) Between 4 and 14 calendar days before the event: Our arrangements with our hosts are always finalised 4 calendar days before each event. With more than 4 calendar days’ notice we can still change the name to someone named by you on the understanding that you will reclaim the ticket price from them separately. Alternatively, we MIGHT be able to sell it to someone else; there is no guarantee of that but we will do our best and then refund you if successful. 

iii) Less than 4 calendar days: We regret that we cannot offer refunds if given less than 4 calendar days’ notice.