History   

The Dreyfus Affair combines a moral crusade to save a man wrongly condemned for treason with a political drama that nearly tore a nation apart. In this lecture, Jess Velona combines video clips with contemporary photos and newspaper headlines to bring this story to life. See how the Affair emerged in a Belle Epoque France already roiled by political unrest, scandal, and cultural and economic change. Watch how Dreyfus's supporters and Zola's "J'Accuse" exposed the forgeries, prejudice, and official corruption that sent the Jewish army officer to prison on Devil's Island, and how they also identified the real traitor. Observe the ensuing political firestorm and antisemitic mob violence, during which Zola found himself on trial, and the courts for years ignored the truth. Finally, consider how long after Dreyfus's reinstatement, the popular hatreds, Zionist stirrings, and media and political changes that the Affair produced echoed deep into the 20th century.

Join fashion designer Kathlin Argiro for a presentation and hands-on fabric flower workshop that brings heritage craftsmanship into the present.

Begin with the story of M & S Schmalberg, America’s last remaining fabric flower factory, and learn how this iconic Garment District atelier continues to serve fashion, theater, and film. Watch a live demonstration of the traditional hand-pressed techniques that define this rare craft.

Then create your own fabric flower using authentic, hand-pressed petals from the atelier itself. You’ll leave with a beautifully finished piece, and a deeper appreciation for the artistry and skill behind this enduring New York tradition.

“All art is propaganda,” Diego Rivera famously pronounced. In this presentation, we will look at how art has been used to inspire people in bringing about social change and upending oppressive power structures. Our investigation will span from the call for liberté, egalité et fraterité in the French Revolution with artists such as David, Gros, and Delacroix, to the anti-war and anti-authoritarian messages of Goya, Picasso, and Kollewitz, to the socialist aspirations of the Mexican painters, Rivera, Kahlo, Orozco, and Sequeiros, and finally to some recent artists such as Barbara Kruger, David Wojnarovicz, Kehinde Wiley, and Ai Weiwei. By the end of the evening, maybe we will all be inspired to make a better world.

For much of the 20th century, Berlin was at the center of conflicts that nearly tore the city and the world apart.  Learn how Berlin, the heart of libertine Weimar culture, became the Nazis' capital and by 1945 a nearly bombed out city.  See how recovery was overtaken by the city's Cold War division, Stalin's 1948 blockade of West Berlin, and a Western airlift that saved from starvation people who'd been America's enemies just three years before.  Relive East Berliners' futile 1953 uprising against Communist rule, Khrushchev's construction of a wall that denied freedom to millions of East Germans, and the fear of both sides during the Cuban Missile Crisis that if war broke out, it might well start in Berlin.  Finally, watch JFK's and Reagan's speeches making the Berlin Wall the symbol of Communist failure, the stunning day the Wall came down, and the renaissance of a reunified Berlin today.  Throughout, learn of the courage of average Berliners, East and West, who struggled for decades to survive.

How did medieval warriors fight and win unruly battles? What weapons did they have at their disposal to defend against and conquer foreign enemies, walled cities under siege, and surprise attacks? This lecture will examine the mechanics of key weapons like the crossbow, trebuchet, and broadsword to better understand what it meant to fight for one’s life in the Middle Ages. Join us as we hear the testimony of victorious soldiers, defeated rulers, and ordinary people conscripted to defend their homelands, for better or worse.

Although historians enjoy a world of beautifully curated manuscripts, sometimes the “garbage” of the past tells us more about the people who lived then. This lecture will explore discovered graffiti from the ancient and medieval past to get a glimpse of daily life as it was recorded on public walls, outhouses, and even church balconies. Join us as we track these unofficial recorders of history through humorous, lewd, and enigmatic graffiti markings.

This lecture traces the meteoric rise and lasting legacy of the "King of Rock and Roll." We explore how Elvis blended diverse musical styles to spark a global cultural revolution, inspiring a generation of legends like John Lennon, David Bowie, and Bruce Springsteen. The journey follows Elvis from his humble beginnings in poverty to his dual stardom in music and film, through the lean years of the British Invasion, and into his triumphant 1968 "Comeback Special." We conclude with his final era as a Las Vegas headliner—a period marked by massive success, personal struggles, and his untimely death at 42—to understand his permanent impact on popular culture.