Art, Power & People: A New Art History Group, run by Left Bank volunteer Amy!

Hiya! I’m Amy Shalvey—art historian, researcher, and general nosy parker when it comes to what artworks can tell us about power, resistance, and the messy business of being human. Originally from County Kerry and now based in Leeds, I’m interested in how art has always been shaped by—and used to challenge—structures of class, gender, race, and sexuality.

This new group is for anyone curious about art history, visual culture, and the social stories that get left out of the mainstream. Whether you’re a seasoned thinker or just fancy trying something different, you’re very welcome.

We’ll meet monthly to chat, share ideas, and dive into themes that explore how art can act as protest, memory, critique, or call-to-arms. No academic jargon required—just a willingness to think, talk!

Some session ideas brewing include:

🧠 Visual Literacy 101: Memes, dog whistles & decoding digital culture
✊ Irish Feminist Performance Art: Or, Keep Your Rosaries Off My Ovaries
❤️‍🩹 Art in the AIDS Crisis: Protest, care, and community-making
💰 Who Gets to Decide What’s Valuable? The art market unpicked

We’re kicking things off with an introductory session where we’ll explore what art history means to us—and look at Leeds’ own radical roots in socially engaged art thinking, going all the way back to the 1970s.

Bring your thoughts, your questions, or just yourself. Let’s make this space together.

PLEASE LET US KNOW YOU ARE COMING BY GRABBING YOUR PAYF TICKET! 

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