Join us for a morning's trip to the South of France, in advance of the Royal Academy's upcoming exhibition "Painting the French Riviera" .

This Special Interest Morning takes us from the russet earth and verdant river-banks of the ‘Côte Vermeille’ of French Catalonia in the western Mediterranean, eastwards to the dazzling light and intense colours of the French Riviera – the ‘Côte d’Azure’ of Provence. The first of two talks discusses Impressionists and Modernists in this ancient region, mostly French artists from Paris, and we then follow in the footsteps of artists from Britain who fell in love with the light, the climate and the simple, elegant culture of the south of France.

Many of the artists and landscapes we will see in these talks will feature in the Royal Academy’s forthcoming exhibition ‘Painting the French Riviera’.

Lecture One:

Taking the Blue Train: French Artists in the South of France

Wealthy tourists discovered the seductive beaches and villages of Provence during the 1860s when a new railway from Paris gave easy access to the south of France. For the Impressionists and early Modernist artists, the streets of Paris, the countryside along the Seine, and the Normandy coast were favoured locations. But in 1886 the Calais-Paris-Mediterranée Express – “Le Train Bleu” – offered a quick and inexpensive journey south. This soon attracted painters who discovered that the living was cheaper in Provence, where the climate and the bright light of the coast from Collioure to Cannes were more conducive to painting en plein air than the rainy north. Cézanne, a native of Provence, led the way and artists from Monet to Matisse, and Van Gogh to Chagall found the natural colours inspiring. Justin takes us on a tour of the artists’ haunts and discusses their work in the landscape of southern France.

Lecture two:

Painting in a Different Light: British Artists in the South of France

The healthy climate of the coast of southern France was discovered by wealthy Britons on the Grand Tour during the 18th century Enlightenment, and became a favourite winter holiday destination for aristocrats and aesthetes by the 19th century, well before the influx of French artists from the north. The simple fishing villages along the coast between the borders with Spain and Italy were quiet havens from the bustle of Britain’s cities and the delightful climate gave welcome respite from the colder months of the British Isles.

Artists from Britain also found the region congenial, its clear light – like that of the Cornish peninsula – and subtle, saturated colours offering a new palette to work with. Justin shows us studies by Turner, and delightful watercolours by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, elegant landscapes by John Singer Sargent, some very creditable paintings by Churchill of his favourite holiday havens, and colourful, evocative paintings by David Hockney.

Justin Reay FSA FRSA

After officer service in the Royal Navy Justin had a long career in business management, latterly as Director of European Culture and Business Studies for executive colleges in Oxford and Washington DC. Retiring in 2001 he studied the History of Art and Architecture at Oxford and Classical culture with the University of Athens. Appointed as a senior academic manager at the Bodleian Library advising graduate students, Justin researched for a doctorate in naval history and became a qualified teacher. He tutors independent students in the History of Art and Architecture, Classical Studies, Academic Writing and Critical Thinking.

A Fellow of two learned societies, a member of the Classical Association, and a member of the Arts Society West Oxfordshire, Justin has been an accredited lecturer for The Arts Society since 2018.

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