The Arts & History   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For students who register for both 1968: The Year That Shook Our History, Part 1 and 1968: The Year That Shook Our History, Part 2 at the same time for a discounted rate.

To register individually, follow the links below:

1968: The Year That Shook Our History, Part 1, Thursday, 5/30, 7 pm
1968: The Year That Shook Our History, Part 2, Thursday 6/6, 7 pm

Unprecedented military defeat in Vietnam, a toppled president, charismatic leaders assassinated, the worst riots in U.S. history – and that was only the first half of 1968. In this class, revisit the start of the most tumultuous year in recent times, which alternated passionate hopes and searing tragedies on almost a daily basis. Also, relive worldwide upheavals, from the May student-worker protests that drove the French Republic to the brink of collapse to the Prague Spring that brought hope for reforming the Communist Bloc. This lecture will be supplemented by audio and video, including memorable speeches by Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy, as well as little-known accounts of behind-the-scenes decisions that led to some of the most shocking events of our time. Up for discussion will be the premise that a shift in one leader's judgment, a few votes, or a single bullet, might have changed the course of history.

If you register for 1968: The Year That Shook Our History, Part 1 and Part 2 (Combo), you will receive a discounted rate.  Click here to register for the combo.

The second half of 1968 brought the tumult of the sixties to a climax. In this class, revisit the summer that saw Richard Nixon seize the mantle of law and order, Soviet tanks crush Czech freedom and a chaotic Chicago Convention tear the Democratic Party apart. Examine the dramatic about-face by Hubert Humphrey that led to a photo finish in the presidential election. Finally, listen to the dramatic Oval Office tapes in which Lyndon Johnson discovered an effort to sabotage his last-minute bid for peace in Vietnam. This lecture will be supplemented by audio and video, including the music that defined an era, and up for discussion will be how the events of 1968 have shaped our history ever since.

If you register for 1968: The Year That Shook Our History, Part 1 and Part 2 (Combo), you will receive a discounted rate.  Click here to register for the combo.

Despite the popular notion that most medieval people lived and died where they were born, dozens of travelogues from the Middle Ages have survived, a testament to adventurous spirits and wanderlust as well as the needs of merchants and pilgrims. How long did it take to travel 20 miles? Where did voyagers stay overnight? In this lecture, we will tour through the itineraries of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim travelers, and consider the hardships and dangers of life on the road--from misty mountain passes to lame draft animals to chilling encounters with highwaymen.

Calling all gumshoes, crooks, and femme fatales: join us to screen Film Noir masterpiece, Double Indemnity with Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwick. We will begin with the film's historical context and legacy, and after viewing, Picture House Education Manager Spencer Sapienza will lead a guided discussion through the cinematic language of the film and the intersection of plot, theme, and filmmaking techniques. Come prepared to share your thoughts, feelings, hidden identity, or tragic backstory! And remember, “Murder can sometimes smell like honeysuckle.”

As recent events have shown, works of art, like Michelangelo’s David, can get swept up in the present-day culture wars. Rather than this being a modern problem, this has its roots in historic attitudes about the overwhelming sensual power of the visual arts. Among the questions we will explore: What is an iconoclast? Why do Italian medieval paintings have scratches on them? What was the Bonfire of the Vanities, and what did it have to do with Botticelli? What was the matter with the Sistine Chapel? Why is Daniele da Volterra nicknamed “the Pantsmaker?” Why was Caravaggio the most rejected painter in 17th-century Rome? Why are all Dutch church interiors whitewashed? These and many other mysteries of the history of painting problems will be explored in an illustrated lecture touching on many major masters and their troublesome works. ​

Join us for our annual stroll around Bronxville Lake, hoping to spot up to twenty species of birds in just two hours. May is nesting season and the birds are in their colorful breeding plumage. Baltimore Orioles, Red-winged Blackbirds, Yellow Warblers, and Tree Swallows will delight the eye. Learn to identify a variety of birds by sight and song.

Join us for a walking tour of the significant monuments, mausoleums, landscape designs, and notable figures at the Woodlawn Cemetery, an 1863 National Historic Landmark. We will visit the monuments of notable individuals from the Gilded Age, passengers of the Titanic, and great Jazz musicians. Guests will have the opportunity to enter mausoleums and discover the funerary art within.

Experience the breathtaking beauty of Untermyer Gardens' lavish plantings on this 90-minute tour which will take you to the most stunning flowers and gorgeous plants in the gardens. An expert tour guide will highlight the seasonal beauty of the garden, discussing the monumental architecture, elements of garden design in general, and of Untermyer Gardens in particular, plants in bloom, and stunning plant combinations. As spring turns to summer, you will be enchanted by the vibrant colors of the profuse flowers as well as the lush foliage, and you will be transported to a world of tranquility.

Join us for a walking tour of the Gilded Age mansions off 5th Avenue, still standing and now serving as institutions, art galleries, and one as Ralph Lauren Men’s Flagship store. Hear the stories of the tycoons of the industrial age, view vintage photographs from then, and compare them to today’s view of the Upper East Side neighborhood.