Manpower Lectures – #4 Queer and Now (online)

Lecture 4: Queer and Now: On Henry Scott Tuke’s ‘Companions’ (pre-recorded, available online)
Lecturer: Jason Edwards

What's queer about long-nineteenth-century British art now? Exploring this question, Edwards addresses Henry Scott Tuke’s 1924 oil painting, Companions. Tuke has remained marginalised and proven difficult to canonise due to the open secret of the pederastic character of his work, at a moment in which childhood sexual abuse remains one of the key cultural narratives of our time. What might we learn from returning to Tuke’s shoreside scene and diving into its unknown waters?

Dr Jason Edwards is a leading scholar of British sculpture and queer theory. He is a Professor of History of Art at the University of York and has been a research fellow at the V&A, Tate Britain, and the University of York. He is the author of an extensive list of publications including ‘Alfred Gilbert’s Aestheticism: Gilbert Amongst Whistler, Wilde, Leighton, Pater and Burne-Jones’ (Ashgate, 2006), ‘Queer and Bookish: Sedgwick as Book Artist’ (forthcoming) and ‘Anxious Flirtations: Homoeroticism, Art and Aestheticism in Victorian Britain’, special issue of Visual Culture in Britain 8.1 (Spring 2007). 
 

Overview 

Manpower: Myths of Masculinity brings into focus some of the many images of male bodies that have underpinned the rich holdings of Auckland’s public art gallery since its foundation in 1888 and in the process explores the complex relationships between people and art, and between men and masculinity.

Across lectures from four leading scholars, you will learn about the varying depictions of the male body and the ever-roaming male gaze in art and culture. Starting with an introduction to the exhibition, uncover the appeal and interpretations of artworks for Victorian-era collectors. Embark on a series of scholarly case studies starring the warriors of ancient Greece, the effete Victorian dandy, and the famous strongman Eugen Sandow, who toured New Zealand in 1902.  

Manpower: Myths of Masculinity was researched by Senior Curator of International Art Sophie Matthiesson and Assistant Curator, International Art Emma Jameson. 
 

Course outline and Materials 

This course comprises four lectures; three will be conducted live and in-person at the Gallery, one will be pre-recorded. Students can watch the pre-recorded lecture at home.

All students will receive a course syllabus with a recommended reading list as well as a copy of the Manpower exhibition catalogue (RRP: $30). Tickets cover in-person admission to lectures one, two and three and online access to the fourth.

This lecture is a pre-recorded lecture that will be made available to ticketholders to watch in their own time. This lecture is the fourth in a four-part series, Manpower Lectures: Antiquity, aesthetes and athleticism.  Click here to see the other events.

This event will proceed at Red with:

• Distancing
• Facemasks mandatory
• Scan in using the COVID app
• Vaccination passports mandatory
• See our website for full terms and conditions of entry.

If you are unable to attend this event because you are in self-isolation (because you have tested positive for Covid-19 or you have been identified as a close contact) you are entitled to a full refund.

 

TICKETING

Standard Members                                                                   $100
Open to AAG Members and those with valid guest passes. Includes admission to three lectures in person, access to one online, reading material and a copy of the Manpower exhibition catalogue (RRP: $30).

Standard Non-Members                                                           $190
Includes a one-year membership, admission to three lectures in person, access to one online, reading material and a copy of the Manpower exhibition catalogue (RRP: $30).

Standard Students                                                                    $80
With valid student ID. Includes admission to three lectures in person, access to one online, reading material and a copy of the Manpower exhibition catalogue (RRP: $30).

This event is part of our membership programme. Join us from $50 per year. 

BECOME A MEMBER

Image credit: Henry Tuke, Companions, 1924. Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, gift of Mr C Macindoe, 1924.