LECTURES

2008

March 9, Sunday, 2—4 pm
WINTER GARDEN LECTURES
A Genius for Place: The Landscapes of Warren Manning

Join Robin Karson and Mackenzie Greer of the Library of American Landscape History (LALH) (www.lalh.org) for two fascinating lectures on Warren Manning, one of the most influential landscape architects and planners of the early 20th century.

Warren Manning (1860–1938), who began his career as an assistant to Frederick Law Olmsted, went on to establish one of the most prolific and far-ranging practices in the United States. From his Boston-based office, Manning directed professional commissions in almost every state in the nation, bringing an unusual combination of planning, horticultural and design expertise to bear on projects that ranged from large subdivisions, city plans, parks, parkways and campuses, to wild gardens of remarkable beauty. Ms. Karson's lecture will focus on on Manning's estate and wild gardens. She will speak briefly on his work for the Whittemore family of Middlebury, Connecticut, and his role as adviser to Theodate Pope.

The Library of American Landscape History has launched a major research initiative into the career accomplishments of Warren Manning. Through a novel research process, Manning's work is being catalogued and interpreted in a two-volume book to be published by LALH. Ms. Greer, the project director, will discuss the foundations of this major project, the exciting cross-pollination among researchers, and special research highlights.

Robin Karson is the founder and director of the Library of American Landscape History, in Amherst, Massachusetts. She has published many articles on the topic of American landscape history, as well as three books, Fletcher Steele, Landscape Architect, The Muses of Gwinn, and her most recent, A Genius for Place, a survey of important practitioners and sites from the American country place era. She is the co-editor of Pioneers of American Landscape Design.

Mackenzie Greer, a native of the Berkshires in western Massachusetts, is the Warren H. Manning Research Project coordinator at LALH. She is currently pursuing a dual Masters degree in Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

There will be a reception at 3 pm, following the first lecture. The second lecture will be followed by a book signing for A Genius for Place.

Lectures & reception: $10 members & students, $15 members-to-be. By reservation, 12:30 pm lunch with the speakers and VIP seating at lecture: $30 members, $35 members-to-be (includes lecture). To register, call 860.677.4787 ext 111.

April 10, Thursday, 7 pm
NINA STANLEY MEMORIAL LECTURE
Rivalries and Reputations in 1860s Paris: Manet, Meissonier and the Birth of Impressionism

Based on his critically acclaimed book The Judgment of Paris, New York Times, Boston Globe and San Francisco Chronicle bestselling author Ross King will illuminate a pivotal period in the world of art history. Through a discussion of the widely divergent careers of Ernest Meissonier (1815—1891), the most renowned French painter of the 19th century, and his arch-rival Édouard Manet (1832—1883), the inspiration for the Impressionists, Mr. King will illustrate the revolution that was shaping the art world while the Civil War raged in America.

Ross King is the award-winning author of Brunelleschi's Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture (2000), chosen "The 2000 Book Sense Nonfiction Book of the Year," and Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling (2003), nominated for a National Book Critics Award. Born and raised in Canada, King has lived in England since 1992.

Lecture & reception: $10 members and students, $15 members-to-be. To register, contact Cynthia Cagenello at 860.677.4787 ext 111 or cagenelloc@hillstead.org.