To mark the Bicentenary of Napoleon’s death, the Courtauld Institute’s Short Courses department has programmed a series of 10 lectures (running online, 5 October – 7 December 2021).  Given the Courtauld’s subject speciality in  art history, conservation and curatorship, the aim of the series is an in-depth investigation of the Napoleonic regime’s  significant, diverse and complex impact on the visual arts.

Updated on 16 September 2021

For further information, please visit the website of the Courtauld.

Online Course > “Liberator, Despot, (fallen) Hero: Napoleon Bonaparte and the Visual Arts”
5 October – 7 December 2021

Liberator, Despot, (fallen) Hero: Napoleon Bonaparte and the Visual Arts: a panel of international experts mark the bicentenary of Napoleon’s death with 10 lectures, released weekly, and followed by live discussions from 5 October to 7 December 2021. They will explore the significant and manifold impact of the Napoleonic regime on the visual arts, including the use of art and design for propaganda purposes, the looting and restitution of art works, Orientalism and ‘Romanticism’, the beginnings of a modern art market and a modern museum world, the art of resistance and much more.

Conducting this term of lectures online will allow the participation of an international panel of leading experts in the field.  Speakers are: Professor Simon Lee (University of Reading); Dr Stephanie O’Rourke (University of St Andrews); Professor Katie Hornstein (Dartmouth College); Emily Christensen (The Courtauld); Emily Roy (University of Cambridge), Dr Kate Heard (Royal Collection Trust); Professor Andrew McClellan (Tufts University); Professor Darius A. Spieth (Louisiana State University); Professor Thomas E. Crow (New York University). Moderator: Dr Anne Puetz (The Courtauld).

Please see the  timetable for the lecture topics.

For full description and how to enroll for this course, see the Courtauld’s website.

Each pre-recorded lecture is released to the participant 1 week before its live Zoom
discussion on Tuesdays 5 October, 12 October, 19 October, 26 October, 2 November, 9 November,
16 November, 23 November, 30 November and 7 December, at 8pm London time.

Duration: each pre-recorded lecture is about one hour long and viewable for a fortnight; each live Zoom discussion lasts around 45 minutes.
Booking: N.B. these lectures can only be booked as a coherent term, not individually.

GENERAL Information

List of partners of “2021 Année Napoléon”.

Calendar of Events.

Follow the special Instagram account for “2021 Année Napoléon” events.

Follow the Fondation Napoléon’s Facebook page in English.

Follow the Fondation Napoléon on Twitter.

Consult the page of the partner publishers and their published or republished works
on the occasion of the bicentenary of Napoleon’s death.

Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter (French or English).

PrEsentation OF THE COURTAULD

The Courtauld works to advance how we see and understand the visual arts, as an internationally-renowned centre for the teaching and research of art history,  and as major public gallery. Founded in 1932, the organisation has been at the forefront of the study of art ever since.

The Courtauld cares for one of the greatest art collections in the UK, displayed at The Courtauld Gallery in Somerset House, in central London. Academically, The Courtauld is a specialist university and home to the largest community of art historians and conservators in the UK. It offers a range of degree programmes and short courses in the History of Art, and teaches curating and the conservation of easel and wall paintings at degree level.