Art History Course | In the Company of Artists
Wednesday 24 September 10.30am – 1pm
Circles of Influence: Artists Among Artists
Wednesday 8 October 10.30am – 1pm
Face to Face: Collaboration in Portraiture
Wednesday 22 October 10.30am – 1pm
Homage: Tracing Artistic Lineage
Join our curators and special guest Colin Wiggins, artist and former Special Projects Curator at the National Gallery, for a new series of thought-provoking art history lectures – In the Company of Artists.
Inspired by the exhibition Seeing Each Other: Portraits of Artists, the series explores how artistic friendships, collaborations and mutual influence have shaped the history of modern and contemporary British portraiture. From the power of creative circles and co-creation to acts of homage and artistic legacy, these lectures offer fresh insights into how artists see and represent one another.
Each session will run from 10.30am to 1pm, featuring two engaging lectures with opportunities for questions and stimulating discussion, plus a coffee break (refreshments provided) in between. Please bring anything you would like to make notes with and let us know when booking of any special dietary or access requirements.
Sessions can be booked individually for £45 per session or book all three for the discounted price of £125.
Click through to each session below to book your place. Add all three sessions to your basket to receive the discounted price when you check out.
Wednesday 24 September – 10.30am – 1pm | Circles of Influence: Artists Among Artists
Wednesday 8 October 10.30am – 1pm | Face to Face: Collaboration in Portraiture
Wednesday 22 October 10.30am – 1pm | Homage: Tracing Artistic Lineage
Colin Wiggins
Colin Wiggins worked for over 30 years at the National Gallery. He was responsible for the Associate Artist scheme, inviting contemporary artists such as Paula Rego, Peter Blake and Ana Maria Pacheco to become involved in the life of the Gallery and to hold exhibitions of their work there. During his time at the Gallery he also curated exhibitions of work by artists such as Frank Auerbach, Bridget Riley, Lucian Freud.
Dr Melanie Vandenbrouck
Dr Melanie Vandenbrouck is Chief Curator at Pallant House Gallery. Formerly Curator of Sculpture 1900–Now at the V&A and Curator of Art Post-1800 at Royal Museums Greenwich in London, she has led major contemporary art initiatives. Her wide interests include the porosity between artforms and the ways in which art and identity intersect. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, she holds a PhD from the Courtauld Institute and trained at the École du Louvre and Sorbonne University in Paris as well as Sussex University.
Miriam O'Connor Perks
Miriam O’Connor Perks is Curator at Pallant House Gallery. She completed her Masters in Art History and Museum Curating at the University of Sussex in 2018. She has contributed to the following publications: Seeing Each Other: Portraits of Artists (2025), The Shape of Things: Still Life in Britain (2024), John Craxton: A Modern Odyssey (2023) and Sussex Landscape: Chalk, Wood and Water (2022).
Dr Claudia Treacher
Dr Claudia Treacher is Assistant Curator at Pallant House Gallery. In 2024 she completed her doctoral thesis from the University of Brighton on radical art during the Second World War. She has previously worked as Collections and Exhibitions Coordinator for Towner, lectured in Critical Studies at Bath Spa University, and researched and written for BBC’s You’re Dead to Me podcast as well as George Orwell’s Collection of Political Pamphlets for the British Library.
