In this lecture, Paul Holberton, author of the acclaimed two-volume book A History of Arcadia in Art and Literature (2021), examines how idyllic landscapes and rustic scenes have been portrayed from antiquity through the Renaissance and into the eighteenth century. Presented in coordination with Pastoral on Paper, Dr. Holberton discusses the nuanced textual origins of the pastoral genre, from Virgil’s adaptations of Theocritus to the influence of medieval pastourelles. Responding to leading early modern literary and artistic luminaries such as Torquato Tasso, Claude Lorrain, and Thomas Gainsborough, Dr. Holberton traces the complex journey of the pastoral across cultures and eras.

Free. Accessible seats available; for information, call 413 458 0524.

Thomas Gainsborough, Wooded Landscape with a Cottage and Cows (detail), mid-1770s, black chalk, watercolor, and gouache on paper. The Clark, gift of the Manton Art Foundation in memory of Sir Edwin and Lady Manton, 2007.8.68