Andrew is an art historian and broadcaster who has made more BBC television series about art than any other presenter.

The paintings of Johannes Vermeer of Delft are some of the most beautiful, even sublime, in the history of art. Yet like the life of Vermeer himself, they are mysterious and have for centuries defied explanation. 

Following new leads, and drawing on a mass of historical evidence, Andrew paints a dramatically new picture of Vermeer, revealing many of the painter’s hitherto unknown friendships as well as his previously undetected allegiance to a radical movement driven underground by persecution thereby vividly evoking the world of the Dutch Republic as it was in its so-called Golden Age. Andrew asks, why did Vermeer paint his pictures, and what do they mean?

This event is sponsored by The Arts Society Cavendish

This event is on general sale from 14 April 2026

Priority dates are:

17 Mar – Directors Circle, Benefactors and Gold Patrons
24 Mar – Patrons
31 Mar– Gold Friends
7 Apr – Friends
14 Apr – Public and Next Gen