LUNÄ Talks

Ikon and the Lunar Society presented an exciting series of evening talks, revisiting themes discussed by the original eighteenth century Lunar Society within a contemporary context.

Chaired by Professor Mario Minichiello (Head of School of  Visual Communication, Birmingham Institute of Art and Design, BCU and current Lunar Society member) each event involved a panel of speakers addressing various issues including education, medicine and science, urban design and regeneration and heritage and the role of art in contemporary society.

LUNÄ talks schedule (PDF 44kb)

Click here to listen to the talks

Wednesday 9 March: Heritage and the role of art in contemporary society.

Steve Bell, award-winning Cartoonist. 

Dr Malcolm Dick, Director of the Centre for West Midlands History at the University of Birmingham and current Lunar Society member.

Tom Freshwater, Contemporary Arts Programme Manager, National Trust.

Professor Paul Wells, Director of the Animation Academy Research Group, Loughborough University.


Wednesday 23 March: Education.

Felicity Allen www.felicityallen.co.uk artist, writer, educator. Current projects: Education, Documents of Contemporary Art (Whitechapel/MIT, 2011); Your Sketchbook Your Self (Tate, 2011); Progress, multi-modal portraits, in progress. Former Head of Learning, Tate Britain (2003-10).

Nancy Evans, Education Manager for Birmingham Contemporary Music Group [BCMG] and a freelance musician and trainer working in early years education.

Colin Gale, Head of the School of Fashion and Textiles and Course Director for the MA Textiles, Fashion & Surface Design, Birmingham Institute of Art and Design.

Kate Iles, PhD student, University of Birmingham; Constructing the 18th century woman; The life and education of Sabrina Sidney.


Wednesday 6 April: Urban design and regeneration

Clive Dutton, Executive Director, Regeneration, Planning & Property, London Borough of Newham. Former Director of Planning and Regeneration, Birmingham City Council.

Tony Harvey, Head of Regeneration West Midlands, British Waterways.

Ruth Reed, President of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).  

David Tittle, Interim Chief Executive, MADE, Birmingham.



Wednesday 20 April: Medicine and science

Dr James H Andrew, Collections Advisor, ThinkTank.

Professor Deirdre Kelly, Professor of Paediatric Hepatology at the University of Birmingham, Director of the Liver Unit, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and current Lunar Society member.

Chris Ramsden, Consultant Clinical Scientist, Chartered Society of Designers.

Prof I Rex Harris, Professor of Materials Science, Leader - Applied Alloy Chemistry Group.