Winter Fine Art & Antiques Fair, Olympia 6-12 November 2006

• Tickets
• Map of Fair
• Special Events
• Talks Programme
• Catalogue
• Eating at the Fair
• Accommodation & Travel
• Buyers Guide
• Art Consultants
• Vetting

Talks Programme

Salon Nights at the Winter Fair

We are delighted to present a talks programme at this year’s fair which has been programmed in association with Miller’s Academy and The Last Tuesday Society. We are grateful for both their support.

Tuesday 13 November 7pm, drinks from 6pm

Horses and Husbands
- The Life and Loves of Etti Plesch

presented by The Last Tuesday Society

Born Countess Wurmbrand from a noble Austrian family, and probably the daughter of a noted rake, Count Josef Gizycki, by the age of 40, Etti Plesch had married six husbands, divorcing five of them, and losing two of them to the same woman. She held a place in The Guinness Book of Records for many years as the only woman owner to have won the Derby twice. Etti Plesch’s extraordinary life is celebrated in her memoirs, which author Hugo Vickers brought to completion this September following her death in 2003.

Hugo Vickers: ‘It is entirely fitting to talk about Etti Plesch among the decadent treasure trove of objects and paintings at Olympia. Etti’s life was similarly surrounded by wonderful things, particularly pictures – I think of the Graham Sutherland of Arpad Plesch, in her apartment in Monte Carlo. And, of course, by the end, Etti was herself a treasured antique.’

Hugo Vickers will sell autographed copies of his latest book.

Wednesday 14 November, 12 noon

Loan exhibition Lunchtime Lecture:
Artisan Art:to 1841 and afterwards

Amongst many other publications James Ayres is the author of British Folk Art, Overlook Press 1977 & English Naive Painting 1750-1900, Thames and Hudson 1980.

Outside the conventions of academic painting and the polite restraint of provincial art the artisan artist operated in splendid aesthetic isolation. With a sophisticated grounding in the craft of painting such individuals recorded the world as they knew it with a heraldic simplicity.

James Ayres will examine these and other features in the history of this aspect of English painting. In particular he will emphasise that this was not, in general, an art for art's sake but a product created in response to the client's need - hence its vigour.

His latest book has been a study on Domestic Interiors: The British Tradition 1500-1850, published by Yale University Press in 2003.

Wednesday 14 November 7pm, drinks from 6pm

From Wedgwood to Conran: What’s in a Name?

Presented by Miller’s Academy

“Value”, “Quality”, “Luxury”: What have these words come to mean in our off-the-peg, one size fits all age? Premier designer Sebastian Conran explores what constitutes excellence and individuality in creating product identity, arguing that value exists at all tiers from 'volume quality’ to 'elite luxury'.

Sebastian Conran is Creative Director of the Product and Graphic design studios of Conran and Partners, a 100 strong architecture and design practice. Most British households contain one of his creations such as the famous anyway up cup. A founding contributor to Blueprint magazine he has written and illustrated numerous articles and books on design including Mothercare’s ABC and 123 books, and Contemporary Furniture and Lighting.

All Talks will be held in the Club Room, on the Gallery of the Winter Fair, please see a floor plan for further information.

Tickets are £10 to include entry to the fair and can be order through www.seetickets.com.

Tickets are £10 to include entry to the fair and can be order through www.seetickets.com.

The Venue

Olympia Exhibition Halls,
Hammersmith Road,
London W14 8UX

Find more information on how to find the halls here.