Otago Decorative & Fine Arts Society (Otago DFAS)

Established in 2016, Otago Decorative & Fine Arts Society (OtagoDFAS) promotes and advances the cultivation, appreciation and study of decorative and fine arts. The Otago Society provides its membership with eight very interesting and insightful lectures per year.  Lecturers undergo a stringent selection process to qualify as lecturers for The Arts Society (based in the UK), of which OtagoDFAS is a member society.  TAS lecturers have a reputation as being excellent international speakers who deliver well researched and illustrated talks.

Otago DFAS Programme Details

Our venue is the Auditorium, 1st Floor, Dunedin Public Art Gallery, The Octagon, Dunedin. Lectures begin promptly at 7.30pm.  Members and guests have the opportunity to talk with the lecturer, meet other members and chat with friends over a glass of wine and light refreshments following the talk.

our 2025 programme

In 2025 we offer seven accredited The Arts Society lecturers from the UK and one Australian-based lecturer, all delivered in our gallery venue. Six of these will be with us in person and two will come via live broadcast from the UK. Online lectures will be held in the winter months and members will also have access to all online events on offer from our sister societies across the country.

Our arrangements may be subject to change if the need arises.

Membership 

To apply for membership, please download the OtagoDFAS Membership Application Form 2025 then complete and send it with your payment according to the directions of the form.

Membership is limited to 125. If numbers exceed 125, your name will be placed on our waiting list and you will be given the opportunity to become a member at the beginning of the next calendar year.
The annual fee for 2025 is $140 per person or $260 for two people living at the same address.
This covers the cost of the venue and equipment, the lecturer fees plus their travel and accommodation, and refreshments after the lecture.
As an incorporated charitable trust we are a non profit organisation.
Guests are welcome to attend a maximum of two lectures a year. If you would like to attend as a guest please email prior to the lecture at otagodfas@gmail.com. A $25 guest fee per lecture is payable on the night.
The fee for visiting DFAS members is $15.
We regret no guest may attend more than two lectures per year, and membership is not transferable.

For further information or to notify changes of contact details, please contact us via email at otagodfas@gmail.com

Otago – 2025 Lecturer Biographies and Topics

Peter McPhee

Otago Date : Wednesday 12 March 2025 – 7.30pm

Peter McPhee was appointed to a Personal Chair in History at the University of Melbourne in 1993. He had previously taught at the Victoria University of Wellington in 1980-87. He has published widely on the history of modern France, most recently Liberty or Death: the French Revolution (2016); and An Environmental History of France: Making the Landscape 1770-2020 (2024). He was appointed as the University of Melbourne’s first Provost in 2007-09. He was awarded a Centenary Medal for services to education in 2003 and became a Member of the Order of Australia in 2012. He is currently the Chair of the History Council of Victoria, the state’s peak body for history.

EDGAR DEGAS AND A WORLD IN FLUX

Edgar Degas was a painter of genius whose long life (1834-1917) coincided with periods of rapid social and economic change and political upheaval. This was a man who disliked the label ‘impressionism’ and yet was one of its exemplars, a conservative curmudgeon who could not stop pushing the boundaries of taste and style. His work lies at the heart of one of the most creative and loved periods in the history of art.

Christopher Garibaldi

Otago Date : Wednesday 16 April 2025 – 7.30pm

Christopher Garibaldi MA (Oxon), MBA, MPhil (Cantab), is an independent researcher and scholar. He recently completed an MPhil in the History of Art and Architecture at St John’s College, Cambridge where he is currently studying for his doctorate on aspects of the history of royal patronage.
2010–2019 Director of Palace House, Newmarket (National Heritage Centre for Horseracing and Sporting Art: 2008–2010 Co-Director of the Attingham Summer School for the Study of Historic Houses and Collections. 1998–2003 Senior Curator & Assistant Keeper of Art (Decorative Art) at Norwich Castle Museum: co-curator of Flower Power – The Meaning of Flowers in Art and Eat, Drink and Be Merry, the British at Table 1600 to 2000. 1994–1997 Catalogued the silver in the Royal Collection at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and other royal residences.

IRMA STERN (1894-1966) – FLOWERS AND FACES OF SOUTHERN AFRICA

Irma Stern was one of the most important and influential artists to come out of South Africa in the twentieth century. A near contemporary of Munnings, her art shows some stylistic similarities although her subjects were very different. A similar concern with figurative painting was in Stern’s case directed at the production of luxurious flower paintings in the manner of Van Gogh whilst perhaps her most original achievement were the powerful portraits she painted of black African sitters in exotic locations and costumes. This lecture serves as an introduction to the art of South Africa whilst addressing important contemporary themes relating to the depiction of race, colonialism and the appropriation of African culture.

Lars Tharp

Otago Date : Wednesday 21 May 2025 – Broadcast Live from the UK – 7.30pm 

Since my 1986 debut on the BBC Antiques Roadshow (and all series since), I have spoken widely, within and beyond the UK. With over 40 years of experience in ceramics and other areas, I aim to combine several compelling narratives with enthusiasm and humour. Born in Copenhagen, I studied Archaeology at Cambridge and joined Sothebys where, as a director and auctioneer (1977-1993), I specialized in Chinese and European ceramics. Today my consultancy devises and curates exhibitions, advises on the acquisition, care and disposal of ceramics and other fields. I also speak a lot: many of my most popular talks concern the vast universe of clay and ceramics as well as the world and works of William Hogarth

THE GATE OF HEROES

Placing orders for Chinese porcelain in London, sending those orders by sea over 10,000 miles to China; waiting months in Canton for delivery of finished orders, loading goods on board ship, and heading home through treacherous seas, back to port of London. And that was the easy part. Conveying the order up country from Canton into Jiangxi province, supervising the potters of Jingdezhen, checking the goods and conveying them safely down rivers, over lake, over mountain -and finally to Canton. A superhuman endeavour for a market may thousands of miles away…
The painted Chinese porcelain arriving in Europe also brought images of a far-off civilization before the era of photography: landscapes roamed by mythical creatures, high pagodas and scholars admiring the view. Thus Fashionable dinner services served as ceramic ‘post cards’, communicating one world to another.
My talk follows footsteps of the China Trade: from mountains quarried for China clay to tables and cabinets palace and mansion. The journey retraces my two BBC films on ‘Treasures of Chinese -still to be found on the internet. You will never again pass by a piece of Chinese export porcelain without recall in the story encapsulated in its journey.

Note: With his online speaking circuit, Lars will be delivering a variety of unique talks to all the NZ Societies so there is an opportunity to view additional topics from home. Details and links will be sent in advance.

Chris Aslan

Otago Date : Wednesday 25 June 2025 – 7.30pm

Chris Aslan was born in Turkey and spent his childhood there and in war-torn Beirut. After school, Chris spent two years at sea before studying Media and journalism at Leicester University. He then moved to Khiva, a desert oasis in Uzbekistan, establishing a UNESCO workshop reviving fifteenth century carpet designs and embroideries, and becoming the largest non-government employer in town. He was kicked out as part of an anti-Western purge and took a year in Cambridge to write A Carpet Ride to Khiva. Chris then spent several years in the Pamirs mountains of Tajikistan, training yak herders to comb their yaks for their cashmere-like down. Next came a couple more years in Kyrgyzstan living in the world’s largest natural walnut forest and establishing a wood-carving workshop. Since then, Chris has studied and rowed at Oxford, lived in Cambridge, but is now based in a mountain village overlooking the sea in North Cyprus. Chris writes fiction and non-fiction, and his most recent book is called Unravelling the Silk Road. Chris lectures for the Art Society during the first quarter of each year, and leads tours with Indus Experiences to Central Asia, having left a large chunk of his heart there.

UNRAVELLING THE SILK ROAD: A TEXTILE JOURNEY

Wool, cotton and silk have each played a crucial role in the fortunes of Central Asia. Wool created the clothing and housing needed by the great nomadic cultures that were to dominate Middle Asia. Silk was more valuable than gold and used as currency, creating a network of trading routes that led to the first outbreak of globalisation. Cotton was the cause of Russian and then Soviet Colonisation and continues to cause controversy today as well as human misery and environmental catastrophe The felts, carpets, embroideries, robes and veils of the Silk Road stratified wealth, displayed religious and political entrenchments and changed the fortunes of this fascinating part of the world; a meeting place between Mohammed and Marx.

Alice Foster

Otago Date : Wednesday 30 July 2025 – 7.30pm

Alice has lectured for Oxford University, Department of Continuing Education since 1998. She lectures at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, and at the Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock. Her busy freelance career also includes organising themed study days with colleagues, and regular weekly classes in Oxfordshire and Worcestershire. In 2004 Alice joined The Arts Society and has lectured in Great Britain and Europe. Formerly President of Northleach Arts Society, she is also President of Banbury Fine Arts Society. Since its inception in 2003 Alice has led study holidays with Learn Italy Ltd to Italy and other parts of Europe. In 2024 she joined the team at the Argyll Hotel, Isle of Iona, Scotland, and runs History of Art Study weeks, specialising in the work of Scottish artists.

ABOUT FACE: HOW TO READ PORTRAITS

What do portraits tell us about the sitter? Are they shy? Are they powerful people? What aspects of character are revealed? What attributes do they include in their portrait painting? Why was the portrait made in the first place, and what does it tell us about the period in which it was made? All these questions are covered in my lecture. Today we expect a likeness of the face in our portraits, but this was not always a priority: sitters would be identified by their coats of arms or perhaps a family emblem. The development of the oil medium in the fifteenth century allowed painters to study the face and thus, the likeness in the portrait face evolved. The lecture is presented thematically rather than chronologically, and themes of family, friendship, power and status and costume are among those covered.

Pamela Campbell-Johnson

Otago Date : Wednesday 3 September 2025 – broadcast live from the UK – 7.30pm

With an MA Hons Art History, St Andrew’s University, Pamela has over 30 years of lecturing experience to undergraduates, adult groups, and to Friends and Patrons of the Royal Academy of Arts as part of the RA’s Adult Education Department. She has also conducted numerous guided tours, residential trips and focused gallery talks on individual works of art. Specialising in British Domestic Architecture and Modern British Art – Pamela has a particular love for the 1920s and 1930s. She’s had permanent career at Royal Academy of Arts for 12 years and work experience also undertaken at Bonhams, Art Loss Register and National Trust. Now a freelance art consultant and lecturer, she recently curated a collection for the Lansdowne Club.

THE ART OF 1935

Can a single year adequately encapsulate an artistic environment in British Art History? Set against the backdrop of the 1935 Silver Jubilee Celebrations of King George V and Queen Mary, we examine a range of contemporaneous art forms including memorabilia, poster and paperback book designs, silver, jewellery, fashion, fine art, cruise liners, film sets, architecture and magazine covers.

Note: With her online speaking circuit, Pamela will be delivering a variety of unique talks to all the NZ Societies so there is an opportunity to view additional topics from home. Details and links will be sent in advance.

Clare Blatherwick

Otago Date : Wednesday 15 October 2025 – 7.30pm

Clare Blatherwick is an independent jewellery consultant based in Scotland. She has over twenty-five years of experience in the jewellery business, ten of which were spent as Head of Jewellery for Bonhams in Scotland, a role which saw her travel internationally searching for wonderful jewels to be auctioned around the globe. She has a keen interest in the historical aspect of jewellery and has lectured extensively on her subject both in the UK and internationally, including Europe, South Africa and Australia. She has also appeared on various TV programmes in the UK and US as a jewellery expert. Clare is a member of The Society of Jewellery Historians.

THE WORLD OF PEARLS

The allure of pearls has been documented from ancient times and there is evidence of the use of pearls in the Arabian Gulf region dating back to 4000BC. In ancient Rome, according to legend, Venus herself was born of the sea like a pearl. The Romans thought pearls were formed from the teardrops of the gods, or perhaps as a result of clams capturing dewdrops in the moonlight. This talk looks at the amazing variety of types of pearls, from those produced by oysters to marine snails, how they are found and some of the most famous pearls in the world, including those that belonged to Mary Queen of Scots.

Anne Sebba

Otago Date : Wednesday 19 November 2025 – 7.30pm

Anne Sebba FRSL is the prize-winning author of ELEVEN books including the best-selling biography THAT WOMAN, a life of Wallis Simpson based on her discovery of 15 unpublished letters locked away in an attic trunk. Her next book was Les Parisiennes: How the Women of Paris Lived, Loved and Died in the 1940’s about a wide variety of women and how they behaved in wartime Paris published in the US, UK, China, France and the Czech Republic, winner of the Franco-British award. She has also written biographies of Jennie Churchill, Mother Teresa and Laura Ashley among others.
She makes regular television appearances and has presented programmes for BBC R3 and R4 including two about the pianists, Harriet Cohen and Joyce Hatto. She began her working career as a foreign correspondent for Reuters news agency, the first woman accepted on their graduate trainee scheme, and has also worked for the BBC world services in their Arabic department, although she does not speak a word of Arabic. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, a senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Historical Research, a Trustee of the National Archives Trust and a former chair of Britain’s 10,000 strong Society of Authors Management Committee.
Her most recent book is a life of Ethel Rosenberg, electrocuted in 1953 aged 37 for conspiracy to commit espionage following a trial with multiple miscarriages of justice, optioned by Miramax and shortlisted for the Wingate Prize. She is currently writing about the Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz, due for publication in March 2025, the 80TH anniversary of the liberation of the camps and also works as a reviewer, journalist, after dinner speaker and lecturer for the Arts Society as well as various other institutions and schools in the UK and US including the British Library, Royal Oak, English Speaking Union and the National Trust.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A PARISIENNE? A SLAVE TO FASHION, A COLLABORATOR WITH THE NAZIS, A RESISTOR OR A MIXTURE OF THEM ALL?

My talk about women in wartime Paris, Les Parisiennes, describes how they lived, loved and died under Nazi occupation. This is a story of resisters, collaborators, spies and couturiers. Some of whom slept with the German occupiers for romantic reasons others for food for their children and still others because they wanted the Germans to win. Some bought designer clothes and commissioned jewellery from Cartier or Van Cleef & Arpels while others made their own clothes if they could, determined to look as chic as possible as way of defying the occupiers. Some went to the theatre, opera and cinema where artists performed to the Wehrmacht. These performers were picked up at the Liberation and punished for supporting the enemy. But other women in Wartime Paris were tortured or starving, courageous women fighting for freedom to believe in equality for all people, many of whom ended up in the concentration camp of Ravensbrück.
The climax of the talk is Christian Dior’s new look in 1947. But his sister, Catherine Dior, was sent to Ravensbrück but never talked about her life as a resister because she was living in sin with a married man and fellow resister. Her story and the stories of many other women, will be revealed in this lecture, but why has it taken so long for the varied and complicated role played by women in Paris to be openly talked about? In this talk I shall discuss some of the many reasons for this long silence, only now being broken.