Back to school

I am blessed with my friends, not least among them, the scholar and art historian Simon Bainbridge. Once a month, Simon takes Chris Beetles and myself to a room at the National Gallery, where he lectures us for an hour, before we give him lunch in the gallery's restaurant. On Monday, he chose room 41, subtitled The Academy. This covers most of the leading French artists during the 19th century, and includes Corot, Delacroix and Courbet, who I couldn't help thinking looked like an early impressionist rather than a late romantic. The room is dominated by The Execution of Lady Jane Grey by Paul Delaroche. However, the real winner for me, was Adoph Menzel's painting, Afternoon in the Tuileries Gardens. Well worth searching out.