The Arts Society East Sussex - Monthly Illustrated Lecture (May 2024)

Wednesday 29 May 2024

 THE ATHLETIC AESTHETIC – YOUR ARTS SOCIETY GUIDE  TO THE 2024 OLYMPICS

Presented by Simon Inglis

 Held at the Hove Club, doors open at 6.45pm.  The lecture starts promptly at 7.30pm.  A licensed bar is available.  Entry is free to ASES members/£10 for visitors (strictly by prior arrangement: a maximum of two visits per year, contact Membership Secretary for further information and to register as a visitor

 From July to September 2024 Paris will host the Olympic and Paralympic Games. But whilst most onlookers will focus on sport, art and design will also play a part, as they have since the games began at Olympia nearly three thousand years ago. Greek art is replete with representations of athletes on vases, plates and bronzes. Every four years modern day hosts unveil dazzling new architecture, in the form of stadia, arenas, velodromes and swimming pools. The athletes themselves act as torch bearers for ever changing ideals of physical perfection. From nudity to Nike, from sand to synthetics, the Olympic story offers art lovers pure gold.

About the Lecturer

Writer and historian Simon Inglis specialises in the architecture and heritage of sport and recreation. Since 2004 he has edited the Played in Britain series for English Heritage. Although sport and recreation might seem an unlikely subject for The Arts Society, non-sporty types need have no fear. Simon’s themes are architecture, design, heritage and popular culture. After a history degree at University College London, he freelanced for various publications, including the Guardian, Observer and Radio Times. He has curated exhibitions for the Building Centre and the British Council, been a regular contributor to radio and television, has travelled and lectured extensively, and written a number of books. Two were shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year, while another, on British football grounds, was chosen by journalist Frank Keating as the best sports book of the 20th century. A recent highpoint in his work for English Heritage was the listing of a 1970s skatepark in Essex, a world first that made the 10 o'clock news.

Further details of this and future lectures can be found on our website: https://www.eastsussexarts.org.uk

Contact Membership Secretary for further information or for visitor registration:

Email:  [email protected]

For further information on lectures, visits and tours go to: www.eastsussexarts.org.uk