4 brilliant things to do this March

Immerse yourself in nature, see new cinema and experience a master painter like never before

A Militiaman holding a Berkemeyer, known as the ‘Merry Drinker’, c.1629, Frans Hals. Image: Rijksmuseum/Kelly Schenk

Enter Frans Hals’ world with Joanna Lumley

To coincide with the major exhibition at Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum, Joanna Lumley has narrated an online experience that takes visitors on a trip through the world of Frans Hals. The renowned Golden Age painter lived in 17th-century Haarlem, a hotbed of culture, commerce and creativity. Lumley tells the stories of his lively portraits as well as the people and places that inspired his oeuvre.

Frans Hals: Strokes of Genius can be viewed at

rijksmuseum.nl/en/whats-on/exhibitions/frans-hals

A still from the film. Image: Courtesy of HanWay Films and Road Movies Production

See Anselm Kiefer on screen

Anselm Kiefer is an artist of epic proportions, and the equally epic director Wim Wenders has tasked himself with producing a groundbreaking documentary that interrogates the work of Germany’s most famous living artist. The fellow German followed the artist for two years, experiencing his creative process, from analysing particle physics to taking a flamethrower to his works. While options to see this documentary in three dimensions were limited when it premiered at the tail end of 2023, there is still a chance to enjoy it from the comfort of your own home.

Anselm is available via Curzon Home Cinema, £10

homecinema.curzon.com/film/anselm

Hever Castle in spring. Image: Courtesy Hever Castle

Step into a Tudor past

The team at beautiful Hever Castle in Kent, advised by historian Dr David Starkey, has been working on a landmark project for the past year. The result is a truly authentic reinterpretation of the rooms the mighty Boleyn family occupied in the 1500s. The Boleyn Apartment opens this month. You’ll find it on the first floor of the castle, filled with Tudor pieces, from tapestries to oak furniture, and natural fixtures and fittings that hold traditional scents. The curatorial team’s aim has been to recreate the rooms just as the Boleyn family would have known them. These are the spaces in which Henry VIII’s tragic queen, Anne Boleyn, grew up and corresponded with the monarch during their courtship, in a household overseen by her charismatic diplomat father. 

Opens 25 March 2024 

hevercastle.co.uk

Courtesy of Berwick Film and Media Arts Festival/Image: Mark Pinder 

Discover experimental cinema in Berwick

Now in its 19th iteration, the Berwick Film and Media Arts Festival celebrates moving image in all its forms, from arthouse and documentary to archival titles and ambitious installations. This year will include the UK premiere of Capital, a film about colonialism and political struggle by Basma al-Sharif, who is of Palestinian heritage. In addition, Emilia Beatriz presents her speculative fiction barrunto, which spans locations from Puerto Rico to Scotland, and there’s an experimental screening and discussion led by artist Onyeka Igwe, who will present their 2023 film A Radical Duet.

Berwick Film and Media Arts Festival, 7–10 March 2024

Tickets start at £7.50

bfmaf.org

Find out more

For more inspiring arts activities see The Arts Society Magazine, available exclusively to members and supporters of The Arts Society (to join, see theartssociety.org/member-benefits). And for more online, sign up at theartssociety.org/signup