We are delighted that Melanie Gibson, author of The Arab Hall, Frederic Leighton: Traveller and Collector, will speak at the Chalke History Festival, discussing the travels, collections, and passions of Frederic Leighton. Further details on her talk, which will take place on Friday, 26th June at 5:30pm in the Henge Tent, are available here.

The lecture is based on the recently released The Arab Hall, the first ever account of the making of the Arab Hall at Leighton House, by reputation, the ‘most beautiful room in London’.
which is available here.

Melanie Gibson, BA (Oxon) MA, PhD (SOAS, London University) is a well-known authority on Middle Eastern ceramics, writing and lecturing on them worldwide. A Council Member of the Oriental Ceramic Society, she is also a Trustee of the Al-Tajir Trust, and a Trustee of the Friends of Leighton House, where she first became fascinated by the history behind the creation of the Arab Hall.