Art Appreciation: The Art of Diplomacy: Behind the doors of the Government Art Collection

What is the Government Art Collection? What kind of art does it hold?

Who decides which artworks are collected and where they are

shown? How can art represent ideas of national identity in Britain and

abroad? How is the Collection funded? Discover the answers to

these questions and more on this revealing introduction to one of the

UK’s less well-known national collections, led by Chantal Condron, a

former curator at the Collection. On this course we examine the

function of this unique collection, discovering how and why artworks

have been collected to represent Britain both nationally and in

diplomatic locations around the world. Discover the origins of the

Collection and how its contribution to cultural diplomacy has

developed since it began in 1899.

Each week we focus on a specific aspect of the Collection, looking indepth at how selected works of art from the 16th century to the

present day have contributed to the role and purpose of the

Collection. Through class discussions, activities, and a range of

varied resources, we will explore topics including art as a form of

cultural diplomacy or ‘soft power’; site-specific commissioned

artworks in locations in the UK and abroad; and recent collaborative

art projects.