SPRING 2025 term starts 20 January
Early Twentieth Century Britain and WWI Home Front (1900-1918)
An interesting period of social, domestic and working life before “the black pit of war”, when wealthy Edwardians led lives of extreme prosperity, while the poor struggled in great poverty and hardship. All was to change forever when men went to war and women went to work in WWI. We see what life was like on the home- front.
We study the Edwardian era “Indian Summer” of peace and prosperity before the horrors of war, when Britons viewed themselves at the beginning of a new century, full of potential and promise, changes and reforms. But…. as years progressed, Edwardians knew there was to be war and started preparing.
We observe domestic, working and social life on the home-front during WWI; the impact it had during this period and its life-changing effects post-war.
When men went to war women went to work. We focus on women and the home-front. They took on what had been seen as hard and heavy work, in factories, on farms, driving buses, and more. Their stories are fascinating with women displaying their ingenuity and inventiveness. Nurses writing home from overseas or who were stationed in Britain give us a touching insight into the lives of men and women during this period.
Illustrated with powerpoint slideshows, documentary film, texts, images and books
10 weeks Mondays 1.30-3.30pm Start 20 January
Ref: MACL028D1A Fee: £152
Enrol: https://www.brightonmet.ac.uk/courses/history-early-twentieth-century-britain-and-wwi-home-front-1900-1918-spring-term/
Rottingdean Whiteway Centre
Arts, Culture and Society in Regency and Early Victorian England
(1800-1850)
We study the late GEORGIAN/REGENCY era and its social, domestic, cultural and working life, as well as the arts, medical matters, distinctive architecture – and many coffee houses! The latter served as public and social places where the Stock Exchange, Lloyds of London and auction houses were spawned.
Brighton is much associated with this period: the extravagances of the Prince Regent (the “Regency”) and his remarkable palace at a time when the fashionable visited the seaside town to take the waters and be entertained.
In EARLY VICTORIAN BRITAIN we see the continuing effects of the Industrial revolution and how it impacted on life in factories and mills. We study each strata of society, from the affluent upper classes, to the new, aspirational middle-class and the miserable lowly poor, and consider all aspects of social, domestic and working life.
Highly illustrated with PowerPoint slideshows.
10 weeks Tuesdays 10.30am-12.30pm Start 21 January
Enrol: https://www.rwc.org.uk/a_grand_tour_of_regency_indulgence_1790-1837
2 PLACES REMAINING
A History of Fashion and Society: Elegant Georgians to Rebellious Punks (1700s-2000s)
If you love fashion, you’ll love this! If you love social and cultural history, you’ll also love this! We study how social history has inspired fashion, just as clothes have influenced social and cultural history. We unravel historic inspiration that has formed and forms innovative, trendsetting or wacky fashion, designers and style.
N.B. History courses may contain outdated attitudes, cultural depictions and language which cause offence today. They have to be viewed from an historic perspective. When discussing the content these views are not those of the tutor.
We view how the social and cultural background of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries influenced British fashion then and now. We focus on aspects of trendsetting style 1700s-2000s, such as the voluminous and extravagant court dresses and exuberant hairstyles of the Georgian period and the dapper Regency dandy; Victorian crinoline, bustle and aestheticism; Edwardian Art Nouveau, elegant Art Deco, innovative wartime recycling, swinging sixties, and subculture of mods, rockers, goths, skinheads and punks. We see how the wheel of fashion and style turns again and again.
We will analyse key style developments and designers such as Mary Quant and the “Swinging Sixties”. A really exciting and fascinating course that will make you think differently about style, clothing, its influences and origins, and what you and others wear. You will discover how fashion informs, and what our clothes say about us.
Illustrated with masses of colourful slides and fashion illustrations.
10 weeks Tuesdays 3-5pm Start 21 January
Ref: MACL164D Fee: £152
Enrol: https://www.brightonmet.ac.uk/courses/history-a-history-of-fashion-and-society-elegant-georgians-to-rebellious-punks-1700s-2000s/
Taught at the church of the Holy Cross Parish Hall, Woodingdean
The Transformation of Mid-Victorian Britain (1851-1875)
Rich and poor and their world: their architecture and living conditions - from large country estates and town houses to humble cottages and town rookeries of the residuum; their social life, culture and the impact of influential women.
We study architectural styles from the grandest country estate to vernacular dwellings, town, terraces, municipal and public buildings and view the internal workings of the home. Other course themes include schooling and the work and life of the governess, mechanic’s institutes which provided evening education for workers; the poor, their lack of amenities, deficient nutrition and medical attention and the effect of their appalling living and working conditions.
We also see how campaigning women made a difference, such as Barbara Bodichon who wrote “Women and Work” which argued that a married women's dependence on her husband was degrading and who founded the “Englishwoman's Review”, a journal run entirely by women for women. We also reflect on the colourful world of William Morris and the Arts & Crafts Movement.
Illustrated with powerpoint slideshows
5 weeks Wednesdays 1-3pm Start 22 September
22/01/25, 29/01/25, 05/02/15, 26/02/25 and 05/03/25.
Ref MACL052D1A Fee £38
Enrol: https://www.brightonmet.ac.uk/courses/history-the-transformation-of-mid-victorian-britain-1851-1875/
The Novel as Social History: Comparing Cultures and Women Alone – Freedom of Women Post WWI
Unique course comprising literature, social and cultural history, book club – and lively discussion! Within the pages of the novel we discover more than a story - enthralling ‘other’ information about people, relationships, class and place.
We study the social and cultural history of the novel by exploring background information we are absorbing unwittingly, and which is not the main theme, but which gives us an extensive and detailed knowledge of everyday life.
Within each piece of fiction is a wealth of information on culture and social life which leads us into deeper understanding of a subject, time, place, period in history, genre, working conditions, habits, style or social trend that we might pursue further, deepen our knowledge and intensify our interest.
There are two books to read each fortnight over 10 weeks in a specific order and make notes. You then participate in lively group discussion in the relaxed and friendly atmosphere. This term’s Comparing Cultures novels include: "The Mother" by Pearl S. Buck (1933), "Housebound" by Winifred Peck (1942), "The Far Cry" by Emma Smith (1949), "A Town Like Alice" by Nevil Shute (1950), "The Ballad of Peckham Rye" by Muriel Spark (1950), and Women Alone: “Latchkey Ladies“ (1921) by Marjorie Grant,“Business as Usual” (1933) by Jane Oliver and Ann Stafford, “The Girls of Slender Means” (1945) by Muriel Spark“, “The Millstone” (1965) By Margaret Drabble – REQUEST FULL READING LIST WELL IN ADVANCE OF THE COURSE FROM TUTOR: SARAH.TOBIAS@gbmc.ac.uk
5 Fortnightly Saturdays, 25/01, 08/02, 01/03, 15/03/ & 29/03 10am-1.30pm
Ref: MACL011D1A Fee £73
Enrol: https://www.brightonmet.ac.uk/courses/history-the-novel-as-social-history-women-alone-freedom-of-women-post-wwi/
LOVE AND LOATHING : AN ALTERNATIVE ST VALENTINE'S
Friday 14 February 2025 7-8.15pm
Great fun! Social history, readings, poetry and food. Find out just what a Vinegar Valentine is ;) In this intriguing online event, you will discover the history of St Valentine and the customs associated with the day.
There will be scandalous tales of love and poison - beware of the chocolates you are given.
You'll discover which foods were said to inflame passion and which foods given by a lover you should refuse. Which foods will seduce and which foods will kill?Delight in the history and be tempted by the food in this fun and informative hour online.
This event is illustrated with slide shows and practical food demonstrations. Dramatic social history will be brought to life and poetry both romantic and humorous will be shared.
Workbook and receipes sent post-event.
Link to book via eventbrite to follow
The ‘Beautiful & Useful’ Arts and Crafts Movement: How it Changed Interior Style (1860s-1914)
“Have nothing in your houses which you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” (William Morris 1880). He and others believed that mass production produced inferior goods and they returned to the styles of earlier ages,
We study the very colourful style of the Arts and Crafts Movement which began in Britain around 1860 and comprised a group of craftsmen, artists, designers and architects who aimed to raise the status of the applied arts (useful, with a utilitarian purpose e.g. weaving or pottery) to that of the fine arts (aesthetically significant – architecture, painting, sculpture and some graphic arts).
The Movement was largely inspired and led by William Morris (1834-96), poet, artist and architect whose firm, Morris, Marshall, & Faulkner, founded 1861, promoted hand-made textiles, books, wallpapers and furniture. The idea was to return to the use of natural materials and recollection of older styles, notably medieval, and to open up and brighten homes. It changed architecture and interior style in an innovative, fascinating and wonderfully artistic manner.
Illustrated with masses of colourful images on powerpoint slideshows
Single Saturday 26 April 11am-3pm
Ref: MCOM193D1A Fee £34
Enrol: https://www.brightonmet.ac.uk/courses/history-the-beautiful-useful-arts-and-crafts-movement-how-it-changed-interior-style-1860s-1914-2/
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🌞 SUMMER 2025 🌞
Taught at Church of the Holy Cross Parish Hall, Woodingdean
Life, Work & Leisure in Late Victorian England (1865-1895)
The long Victorian period was one of complete contrasts, especially during the latter part of the century. We study progress and change in architecture, technology, domestic life, work, leisure and the arts, using literature as a backdrop to set the scene, and paintings to demonstrate domestic and public life. We focus on cultural aspects of society, expansion and development, and wider issues of change and women's status; and view various transforming revolutions which impacted on society, including advances in technology and the electrical revolution of 1870. New scientific thought caused landowners to reconsider agricultural methods of farming; this in turn effecting changes in rural and urban life. There was considerable migration from country to town which brought about changes in traditional ways of living. We also consider facets which remained constant, such as the huge gap between the lives of wealthy and poor.
We discuss social investigation and reforms, including Charles Booth's “Life and Labour of the People in London” and his famous poverty maps. Social conscience among the burgeoning middle classes led to social investigation and action. There were many women social investigators, such as Brighton born Clementina Black (1853-1922), feminist, author and social reformer who was involved with the 1888 Match Girl’s Strike at the Bryant and May factory – conditions we also study.
Illustrated with PowerPoint slideshows.
9 weeks Wednesdays 1-3pm Start 30 April
Ref: MACL058D1A Fee £68 Enrol:https://www.brightonmet.ac.uk/courses/history-life-work-leisure-in-late-victorian-england-1865-1895-spring-term/
Pelham Street Campus
Arts and Crafts to Art Deco: Arts and Culture of the 19th & 20th Centuries
The three wonderful ‘A’s! Three new and exciting movements from the middle of the Victorian century to the middle of the Twentieth century.
After industrialised mass-produced goods, the Arts and Crafts movement celebrated a return to individual handcrafted items. This led to the ornate, nature-inspired designs of Art Nouveau which morphed into the geometric style of Art Deco. All influenced people’s lives and living.
We study the impact of arts and culture on 19th and 20th centuries society and the very distinct and colourful look of each of these inspired, innovative and iconic styles, starting with William Morris led Arts and Crafts. It began mid-century in Britain, comprising a group of craftsmen, artists, designers and architects who aimed to raise the status of the applied arts to that of fine art. They hand- made individual pieces that were also useful, and designed exquisite houses, furniture and furnishings.
Art Nouveau style followed on directly from Victorian Arts & Crafts and was in response to radical changes and technological advances. It was highly decorative, with undulating and flowing forms, waves, asymmetrical lines and famous “whiplash” curve. Its organic structure, designs and motifs were influenced by many forms; as was 1920s & 30s iconic Art Deco, Modernist style, but this was geometric and curving, utilising modern technology and materials such as cement and chrome.
Highly illustrated with masses of colourful power-point sideshows, books and images.
8 weeks Tuesdays 1-3pm Start 29 April
Ref: MACL045D1A Fee £113
Enrol: https://www.brightonmet.ac.uk/courses/history-arts-and-crafts-to-art-deco-arts-culture-of-the-19th-and-20th-centuries-summer-term/
Space, Light & Speed-Art Deco & Modernism (1918-1940)
For those who love the smoothly distinctive style of Art Deco and clean lines of Modernism which dominated all aspects of interwar domestic and cultural life, and was notable for its architectural and design features. Iconic and elegant, it was used to furnish homes in a new and exciting fashion, utilizing modern technology and materials.
The Decorative Movement, Modernism or ‘moderne’, later described as ‘Art Deco’, was based on classical and other influences, including Egyptian - after the opening of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922 by Howard Carter and Lord Carnaervon.
The distinctive iconic style of space, light and speed, vibrant with colour, its modern designs full of sharp patterns, was also described as "jazzy”. It utilised modern technology and innovations such as plastic, chrome, aluminium and electricity.
Smooth lines and geometric patterns featured on architecture, advertising, jewellery, furniture, glass, ceramics, lighting, metalware, technology and influenced cinema. The elegant style fabulously showcased high fashion and adornments.
Illustrated with books, paintings and hundreds of colourful powerpoint slideshows.
8 weeks Tuesdays 6.30-8.30pm Start 29 April
Ref: MACL001E1A Fee £113
Enrol: https://www.brightonmet.ac.uk/courses/history-speed-light-speed-art-deco-modernism-1818-1940-summer-term/
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