The Arts Society Saltaire

24/06/2026

A change of lecture! Our July 1st meeting, 2pm, at Bingley Arts Centre, will now welcome Simon Seligman who will talk to us about the amazing Chatsworth House. We hope to see Colin Shindler and 'Gotta Dance' at a later date.

Since the 1950s, Chatsworth and its collections have undergone a renaissance under the leadership of the 11th and 12th Dukes and Duchesses of Devonshire and continues with Lord and Lady Burlington, and the Chatsworth House Trust. This lecture paints a portrait of Devonshire’s treasure house in the modern age, illustrating the extensive C21st decorative and furnishing renovations in the house and the restoration of historic interiors, stone work and works of art. The lecture also includes work by modern and contemporary artists in the collection at Chatsworth including Lucian Freud, Elisabeth Frink, David Hockney and David Nash, to Richard Long, Allen Jones, Michael Craig-Martin and Edmund de Waal.

20/06/2026

18/06/2026

For most of us, sight, smell, touch, sound and taste are separate. But for a synaesthete, one sensory pathway triggers another – letters of the alphabet may have colours; tastes may trigger shapes; and music may create vivid imagery in the mind’s eye.

In the spring issue of The Arts Society magazine, Isabella Smith explores how figures ranging from Wassily Kandinsky and Vincent van Gogh to Beyoncé have harnessed the multisensory magic of synaesthesia.

Seen here is ‘Candle in the Wind (Elton John)’ by artist and synaesthete Jack Coulter, who, with eyes shut, ‘sees’ forms and colours appear in response to sound – then paints these sights.

18/06/2026

This June sees the 100th anniversary of the death of Antoni Gaudí, the master builder of Barcelona. His still-unfinished masterpiece, the Sagrada Família – on which construction began in 1882 – looks set to be structurally complete this month.

The history of the Sagrada Família is perhaps surprising. It is a private church, funded by donations and revenue from entry tickets, and was only consecrated by the Catholic Church in 2010. It did not receive a municipal building permit until 2019, having been under construction without one since 1882.

Its story began when Josep Maria Bocabella i Verdaguer, a devout Catholic, bookseller and founder of a religious organisation, bought a plot of land in the Eixample district of Barcelona. He commissioned the official architect of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Barcelona to draw up plans for a church.

The foundation stone was laid on 19 March 1882 and a Neo-Gothic structure started to grow. However, the architect and building committee fell out, and in 1883 the 31-year-old Gaudí – who was making his name in Barcelona’s architectural community – was hired to take over the project. It would come to dominate Gaudí’s life, and from 1914 until his death in 1926 he devoted all his time to it, even going so far as to sleep in his workshop within the basilica.

13/06/2026

A message from our President, Hilary Kay, for Volunteers’ Week.

Since becoming President in April 2025, I’ve been continually inspired by the passion and commitment of our volunteers across the UK and beyond.

This Volunteers’ Week, I want to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who gives their time, whether you’re running Societies and Areas, supporting local arts projects, creating Trails of Discovery, or helping to record and conserve our heritage in places of worship, museums and historic buildings across the country.

Your time, skills and energy make a real difference. You help preserve, celebrate and share the arts and heritage in communities everywhere - and you are vital to everything we do.

Happy Volunteers’ Week, and thank you.

Find out more about volunteering: https://theartssociety.org/volunteering

13/06/2026

17/05/2026

A quick reminder that our current show 'Interpret A Poem' featuring artworks by Aire Valley Arts members finishes tomorrow (Sun 17 May).

We're just up Park Rd near the Station in Bingley.

https://davidstarleyartist.com/bingley/

29/04/2026

It's Spring and the perfect time for a Garden Party

04/04/2026

Welcome in the longer days with some brilliant exhibitions this season!

In 1824 the young king and queen of the Hawaiian archipelago embarked on a perilous journey across oceans to seek protection from the British Crown. Head to the British Museum before 25 May to see 150 early Hawaiian objects and art, as well as powerful contemporary works. The objects in ‘Hawai‘i: A kingdom crossing oceans’ have been selected by museum curators in collaboration with Native Hawaiian artists and scholars.

When Edinburgh’s Modern Two reopens on Thursday 2 April, check out ‘Joan Eardley: The Nature of Painting’, which places the beloved Scottish painter’s works in context by showing them alongside historic artworks by the likes of Constable and Monet, as well as works by her contemporaries in Scotland and beyond. The show runs until 28 June.

‘Handpicked: Painting Flowers from 1900 to Today’ opens on 25 April at Kettle’s Yard in Cambridge. Bringing together floral paintings by around 40 artists, it includes works by Vanessa Bell, Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Jennifer Packer. Also check out ‘In Bloom: How Plants Changed Our World’ at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford from 19 March until 16 August.

For more inspiration for your spring calendar, dip into the newest issue of The Arts Society Magazine, our gift to our members. Head to our bio to find out how to join.��Pictured here is ‘Chrysanthemums’ (2015) by Jennifer Packer, photograph © The Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge.