Monday 13th January 2025

T S Eliot and Art
Toby Faber
 

This talk explores the way TS Eliot was indebted to some of the twentieth century's greatest artists, and his connections with some of the most interesting artists of his era.

As a pioneer of literary modernism, TS Eliot inevitably influenced his counterparts in the visual arts. He was friends with several artists. Edward McKnight Kauffer and David Jones illustrated his work, Patrick Heron and Wyndham Lewis painted him and Jacob Epstein sculpted TS Eliot. There are paintings and compositions inspired by his poems. And the reverse is also true - The Waste Land famously employs techniques borrowed from modern art. 

Toby's lecture will explore some of those connections, looking at Eliot's life and poetry through a new lens, while also taking the chance to display some of Eliot’s own artistic creations including the jokey little sketches he included in letters to children.

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Toby Faber

Toby has been to talk to us several times before on a range of subjects. He's an experienced lecturer and public speaker who has been accredited by The Arts Society since 2012. His career began with Natural Sciences at Cambridge and has been through investment banking, management consulting and five years as managing director of the publishing company founded by his grandfather, Faber and Faber, where he remains on the board. He is also non-executive Chairman of its sister company, Faber Music and a director of Liverpool University Press. Toby has written three narrative histories: Stradivarius – Five Violins, One Cello and a Genius; Faberge’s Eggs; and Faber & Faber – The Untold Story, as well as a novel, Close to the Edge. Of these, only the obvious one is published by the family firm.

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