If you are thinking of trying out learning something new this New Year then take a look at what is on offer in Monmouthshire.

Monmouthshire Museums is really opening up new territory with the subject of its new Art History course.

Join popular local lecturer Eleanor Bird on Monday afternoons from 2-4pm at the Drill Hall, Chepstow to discover The Art of Scandinavia and explore the surprising art of the frozen north.

The course will run over 10 weeks from Monday January 23.

Moving from the art of the Vikings via extraordinary mediaeval wall paintings to Renaissance power portraits, as Sweden and Denmark rise to become major European powers in the 16th and 17th centuries.

The 19th century was dominated by the Danish Golden Age painters who vied for the spotlight with their intimate portraits of family interiors, vast snowy landscapes and mysterious forest scenes.

With the fashion for capturing ordinary rural life, artists ‘colonies’ sprung up in remote villages, capturing the struggles of fishing communities and the romance of long evenings under the midnight sun.

Among these painters were successful women artists who came even further into the spotlight in the early 20th century.

The course is also available online via Zoom on Wednesdays, and the option to catch up on any missed sessions available to all with recorded online lectures available for a limited period.

Another course is also on offer in one hour bite sessions online on Monday evenings.

This introduction to art history course will be looking at the art of the 17th century.

Take time out to revel in the art of Rubens, Rembrandt, among many others and see how art reflected the society and politics of the time..

For more details of all of these opportunities and how to go about booking the courses can be found at www.visitmonmouthshire.com/arthistory