By PAUL STANSBURY

Contributing writer

The Community Arts Center invites you to meet Drs. Amy Frederick and James Bloom of the Centre College Art History department for an afternoon of art. On Wednesday, Feb. 15, these art historians will discuss the“Golden Age of Dutch Art” at the Art Center’s monthly Lunch with the Arts program.

This period has lately become the stuff of popular fiction, captivating the historical imagination through novels such as “The Girl with the Pearl Earring” and “The Goldfinch.” These Romantic portraits of 17-century art extend the aura that has long accrued to the celebrated works of Rembrandt and Vermeer — and not without reason.

The Dutch Golden Age encompasses most of the 17th century. It was a period of remarkable achievement, not only in art but in the emergence of the first modern, capitalist economy. Where might these two worlds intersect? How does the rise of commercial enterprise lead to the innovation that ultimately resulted in the artistic triumph with which we have become so familiar? These questions are what Frederick and Bloom will explore in the latest installment of Lunch with the Arts.

Frederick joined Centre’s faculty in 2015 as visiting assistant professor of art history. Her major area of interest is 17th-century Dutch art, with a particular focus on the printed oeuvre of Rembrandt van Rijn. She received a B.A. in English and art history from Duke University, an M.A. in art history and museum studies and a Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve University.

Bloom joined Centre’s faculty in 2011, and is the Associate Professor of Art History and Chair of the Art History and Studio Art programs at Centre College. He was named a Centre Scholar in 2015, and has been awarded fellowships from the U.S. Fulbright Foundation, The American Council of Learned Societies and the Belgian-American Educational Foundation. He is currently a member of the Board of Governors for the Speed Art Museum in Louisville. Bloom received a B.A. in art history and English literature from Dartmouth College, and earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in art history from Duke University.

He teaches a wide range of courses on art history and visual culture, from economic histories of the arts to the history of portraiture to the intersections of art, science, and technology. He also regularly teaches in the first-year humanities sequence, and has led study abroad programs in Belgium, The Netherlands and Austria.

His research addresses the historical advent of easel painting as a tool for domestic decoration, and he is currently completing a book on this subject, entitled “The Social Image: Essays on the Genealogy of Easel Painting in Early Modern Europe.” Also, he is co-authoring an essay on the contemporary market for mass-produced paintings.

Remember, Lunch with the Arts is no longer taking orders for lunch. However, guests are still invited to bring their own lunch.

IF YOU GO

Lunch with the Arts: Amy Frederick and James Bloom

present “Golden Age of Dutch Art,”

noon-1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15

at Community Arts Center

$7/door

ON EXHIBIT

New Year New Art – the newest art by 50 of the region’s top artists, through Feb. 25.  Open regular business hours, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday; suggested donation of $5

COMING UP

• POP Kids: Hot Cocoa Mugs, 1-2:30 p.m. Feb. 25, $20/person

Drop your child off for a paint-your-own pottery workshop. Finished mugs will be fired in the Arts Center kiln and be ready for pickup approximately 10 days after the event. Open to children in grades K-12. Register online.

• Starry Night Studio: Rosie Red Apple, 7-9 p.m. Feb. 29, $28

Paint a juicy red apple that looks good enough to eat (or at least to hang on your wall!) This is a very easy painting, so if you’ve never picked up a paint brush, our instructor will guide you from blank canvas to completed masterpiece in just two hours – no experience required. Register online.

• Munchkin & Me Art Classes, 10 a.m. Mondays, free

A visual arts class for children ages 18 months-4 years, with an adult caregiver. Experiment with new techniques and new mediums each week!. No preregistration required.

• Beginner Ballroom Dance, 6 p.m. Thursdays, $10/door

No preregistration required and you don’t need a partner.

For more information, or to see a complete listing of all classes offered currently and coming soon, visit communityartscenter.net.