Artists and UoG experts to discuss research that led to discovery of orchestral work by forgotten composer

New research that led to the discovery of an orchestral work by a forgotten Dutch composer will be discussed by artists and experts as part of an exhibition at University of Gloucestershire.

Father and son Stephen and Sam Belinfante, who are both artists, uncovered Ontwaking (‘awakening’) by Daniël Belinfante, during a research trip to Amsterdam and The Hague, where numerous Belinfantes once lived and worked.

Daniël Belinfante was a cousin of Stephen’s who died in Auschwitz in 1945, just before it was liberated, but other members of the Belinfante family such as Frieda Belinfante (1904–1995), who also practiced art and music professionally, evaded capture and supported others through acts of resistance.

Stephen and Sam Belinfante probe the difficulties of perceiving history and memory through their respective mediums – Stephen in painting, collage and works on fabric, and Sam through film and sound works – in an exhibition entitled Ontwaking at the University’s Elwes gallery, Park Campus, Cheltenham.

On Thursday, 19 February (6pm-8pm), Sam Belinfante will present a talk about the research that he and Stephen carried out to produce the exhibition. He will be joined by Stephen, who lives and works in Cheltenham, for a panel discussion with the University’s Dr Will Large and Professor Andrew Bick, chaired by Elwes gallery curator, Sarah Bowden.

The event is free to attend but places must be booked in advance.

In addition to its usual opening hours (9am to 5pm), on 19 February the Elwes gallery will open until 6pm to enable guests to visit the exhibition before the talk and discussion.

The Elwes gallery is a curated exhibition space hosting staff research, presentations by community groups, and undergraduate and post-graduate students’ work, that creates dialogue between the past and future of visual arts practice.

Image: Visitors to the Ontwaking exhibition at University of Gloucestershire