'The Man with the Pitchfork': Grant Wood & the Regionalists

Nostalgic, mostly rural, the Regionalists told stories of everyday life in The Great Depression in images that ordinary people could understand.

But was there an element of satire in their painting? Or even of reactionary propaganda?

This brief period of figurative art in 20th Century America was short-lived but steeped in morality and emotion.

This lecture includes paintings by Grant Wood, John Steuart Curry, Thomas Hart Benton and others.

Stella Grace Lyons is a freelance Art History lecturer, speaker and writer accredited with The Arts Society. She has lectured across the UK, Ireland, Spain, Norway, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Malaysia and will soon embark on a lecturing tour in Australasia.

Stella gained her BA in the History of Art with a 1st class in her dissertation from the University of Bristol (2007-2011), and her MA in History of Art from the University of Warwick.

She spent a year studying Renaissance art in Italy at the British Institute of Florence, and three months studying Venetian art in Venice. In addition, she attended drawing classes at the prestigious Charles H. Cecil studios in Florence, a private atelier that follows a curriculum based on the leading ateliers of nineteenth century Paris.

Stella runs her own Art History lectures and is a regular lecturer in the UK and Europe for The Arts Society, ACE Cultural Tours, Hebridean Island Cruises, Saga’s Art Appreciation Tours, and the National Trust, amongst others. Stella is also a part-time lecturer for the University of South Wales.

She has written about art for several publications and her article on Norwegian art was recently featured on the front cover of the Arts Society Magazine. In addition to her lecturing work, Stella works as an artist’s model for the internationally renowned figurative artist, Harry Holland.