Basic HTML Version
20
City & Village Tours: 0845 812 5000 info@cityandvillagetours.com
Three Exciting Tours for Autumn &
Made in Birmingham
With Love & Death: Victorian Paintings from the Tate
Weekdays 10 September 2012 until 11 January 2013
This autumn some spectacular paintings from the national
collection are come to Birmingham Museum & Art
Gallery.
Love & Death: Victorian Paintings from Tate
will display eleven iconic paintings from Tate alongside
related works from Birmingham’s own collection
exploring themes of love, beauty, tragedy and death.
The centre piece will be John William Waterhouse’s
‘The Lady of Shalott’ (1888), one of Tate’s most famous
and popular works, which rarely travels outside London.
It will be joined by two other paintings by Waterhouse:
a rare opportunity to see this artist in Birmingham.
The exhibition also features classical paintings by the great
19th century artists Frederic Leighton and Lawrence Alma
Tadema, revealing the Victorian fascination with lovers’
flirtations and dramatic martyrdom in ancient Greece and
Rome. Enjoy an afternoon visit to the exhibition as part of
a full day out with an erudite and entertaining Blue Badge
Guide. Meet the guide in central Birmingham at 10.30am
for morning coffee & biscuits at a canal side pub. During
the morning we take you on a tour by coach and by foot
to see the beautiful squares, greenery and public art in this
surprising city. In a Georgian Square we hear about the
pioneering inventors and entrepreneurs of the industrial
revolution who met by moonlight and we visit some
hidden catacombs. Back to the pub for a fish & chip or
vegetarian lunch before spending the afternoon at the
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery including the special
exhibition.
This tour costs £18.95pp including morning
coffee with biscuits and lunch as described.
Dedicated Followers of Fashion
With
Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950 at the V&A
Daily from 1 October 2012 until 4 January 2013
The V&A celebrates the opening of the newly renovated
Fashion Galleries with an exhibition of beautiful ballgowns,
red carpet evening dresses and catwalk showstoppers.
'Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950' features more than
sixty designs for social events such as private parties, royal
balls, state occasions and opening nights.
The exhibition (which is open now) covers over sixty years
of a strong British design tradition that continues to flourish.
Evening wear from the V&A’s vast collection, by designers
including Zandra Rhodes, Alexander McQueen, Erdem and
Jenny Packham. A selection of royal ballgowns will also be
on display, including a Norman Hartnell gown designed for
Elizabeth the Queen Mother, Princess Diana’s ‘Elvis Dress’
designed by Catherine Walker and gowns worn by today’s
young royals.
Meet our guide at Trafalgar Square at 10.30am to buy
morning refreshments. London has been an important centre
of the fashion and clothing industry for over 700 years.
Our informative coach tour traces the story from early
times when folk all dressed the same and only jewellery
distinguished wealth through to the opening of new trade
routes bringing new and finer materials and dress began to
denote status. Mediaeval fashion police literally patrolled
the streets to fine and imprison violators of laws designed
to curtail ungodly extravagance – the first fashion victims!
By Tudor times fashion conscious clients could choose their
look from miniature fashion dolls dressed in cutting-edge
style. But it was the dual impact of the Singer sewing
machine and the movies that eventually gave birth to the