Bermuda was often marketed as a pastoral paradise – ‘another world’ where one could leave behind modern life – but was this always how artists, or even your typical visitor, saw it?

Join us for a talk by Masterworks Museum’s Curatorial Researcher Dr Sara Thom, who will re-examine the Bermuda photographs of Karl Struss. Best known for his work in film and for his ground-breaking photographs of New York City, Struss visited Bermuda three times between 1912–14, producing a large body of work which evidences not only his style, process and fascinating relationship with the island, but also the physical and social landscape of Bermuda in an important period of modernisation and change.

She will trace Struss’ steps as he traversed Bermuda, linking his Bermuda photographs with his larger, urban-focused practice and his later transition into cinematography, an interest which was sparked by a chance encounter whilst on the island. 

Date: Thursday, November 9, 2023

Time: 5:30pm – 7:00pm

Location: Masterworks Museum of Bermuda Art, Butterfield Gallery

This talk will be given by Dr. Sara Thom, the Curatorial Researchers at Masterworks Museum. She received her PhD in Art History from the University of Birmingham (UK, 2018). At Masterworks, Sara focuses on research and curation around the Museum’s Permanent Collection.

Image featured: Entrance to Bermuda Cottage by Karl Struss, 1912