RSA Fellows Artists' Network Event: Sir John Soane's Museum Tour

Join the RSA Fellows Artists' Network for a visit to Sir John Soane's Museum.

We'll be taking a tour, guided by one of the museum's curators, of "one of the most complex, intricate and ingenious series of interiors ever conceived" (Oxford Dictionary of Architecture).

The museum is the former home of Sir John Soane (1753-1837), a Neo-Classical architect, who designed among other buildings the original Bank of England and Dulwich Picture Gallery. He is widely regarded as the founder of the architectural profession in England.

He was also an avid collector of antiquities and over his lifetime transformed his own home and adjacent houses into an astonishing private museum suffused with a wonderful play of light, space, and artefacts, which he left open to the public on his death - the first museum of its kind. As well as classical sculptures and an Egyptian sarcophagus, the collection includes a series of uniquely displayed original Hogarth prints. The visit promises to provoke reflections on life, memory, the role of art in the home, and our own place in history.

The tour will last roughly an hour and attendees are invited to join the Fellows Artists' Network for discussion and refreshments afterwards.

Places are limited to 12, and will be allocated on a first-come first-serve basis. They are free and attendees will be invited to make a contribution towards the cost of the tour on the day.

Any questions, please contact Mark Power: markpower@millspower.com.

To let us know of any access requirements or reasonable adjustments you have, please email the RSA team: networks@rsa.org.uk.

Location: Sir John Soane’s Museum, 13 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3BP

About this network...

The Fellow Artists’ Network (FAN), was started to give working artists the opportunity to network, discuss issues important to them, and to show their (and others') work. Core members are Andrew Darke, Chair and environmental artist; Mark Power, Secretary and architect; Hazel Chandler, Creative Director and film maker, and Philip Emery, Treasurer and musician. The group was founded by Ann Kristin Glenster FRSA.

Artists are often working alone in their studio or at their computer and we wanted to break that isolation and come together. We organised a visit to the Jubiloo at South Bank, designed by Mark Power; an evening of short films; a concert by ex-prisoners who then talked about how music helps them; a guided tour around the Saw Swee Hock student centre, and so on. Discussions range from Arts Council funding to ethics and editorial control. We are currently developing the project "What's On Your Walls?" about what people put on their walls and what art means to them. Look out for events advertised on the RSA website and join us - you don't have to be an artist, just interested in the arts, and we welcome suggestions for events.