Fin-de-Siècle Emigré Collectors: A British Story
Jewish Book Week
| John Hilary | speaker |
|---|---|
| Jacky Klein | chair |
Researcher and writer John Hilary unpicks the tangled histories of the German Jewish philanthropists and art collectors whose legacies were nearly erased by wartime suspicions and prejudices.
Exalted in Edwardian society for their philanthropy and cultural patronage, a circle of German-Jewish magnates emerged as the foremost art collectors in fin-de-siècle Britain. But during the dark days of World War One, their loyalties were condemned, their collections scattered after their deaths, and their legacy largely erased from art history.
Magnates & Masterpieces is the first book to restore their story; author John Hilary joins us to examine their New Humanist upbringings, ideals and ambitions, and above all their enduring faith in art’s power to enrich the soul.
This event will last approximately 1 hour, with no interval.
Concessions & Under 30s tickets
Kings Place Concessions Tickets
We want to ensure that people who may be struggling financially to purchase a ticket can still enjoy visiting Kings Place. A limited number of tickets are allocated for certain events (if the ticket type does not show in the booking pathway, it means they are not available for this event or have all been sold). Concessions tickets are accessible for people on the following criteria (for more information visit our FAQs)
- Pension Credit
- Universal Credit
- Disability Benefit
- Income Support or Job Seekers allowance
- Students
£10 ‘Under 30s’ tickets
A limited number of £10 tickets for attendees aged under 30 are available for certain shows. To purchase an ‘Under 30s’ ticket, please choose the ‘Under 30s’ price type when selecting your ticket(s). If the option does not appear, this means all ‘Under 30s’ tickets have sold out or are not available for this performance. Please note that proof of age may be requested at the venue. The £10 offer does not apply to premium price categories.
Plan your visit
Getting here
Kings Place is situated just a few minutes’ walk from King’s Cross and St Pancras stations, one of the most connected locations in London and now the biggest transport hub in Europe.
Our address is:
90 York Way, London, N1 9AG.
The Venue
Our performance spaces are situated on the lower ground floor. Hall One, Hall Two and St Pancras are located in level -2, reached by stairs, escalator and lift from the ground floor entrance level.
Event Times
Door times indicate auditorium entrance times only. Visitors are welcome to enjoy the Kings Place seating areas, gallery-level art, canal-side terrace, café, restaurant and bar throughout the day and evening.
- Our events begin promptly at the advertised start time. Typically, there is no support unless otherwise stated.
- We recommend arriving in good time before the performance. The Hall doors will open 30 minutes before the performance to allow time to take your seats, or to choose a space for standing shows.
- Latecomers will be admitted at a suitable break in the performance where possible
Access
We aim to make your visit to Kings Place as comfortable as possible. For more information about the accessibility of Kings Place, including details about our Access Scheme, please visit this page.
If you would like to discuss your access requirements with a member of our team, please get in touch with the Box Office team at info@kingsplace.co.uk.
Food & Drink
Rotunda Bar & Restaurant
Rotunda, situated on the ground floor of Kings Place, offers a unique dining and drinking experience alongside Regent’s Canal. The concert bar in the venue foyer will also be open for select events.
Green & Fortune Café
Recently re-furbished and now open with a new look, the Green & Fortune Café is open for selected concerts. Serving hot and cold food and drinks, including sandwiches, salads, soup, stew and a pie of the day, alongside a choice of cakes made by the on-site bakery team. See here for selected concert dates and standard opening hours.
John Hilary
John Hilary is an honorary professor in the School of Politics and International Relations at the University of Nottingham, and author of From Refugees to Royalty: The Remarkable Story of the Messel Family of Nymans (Peter Owen, 2021).
Jacky Klein
Jacky Klein is a publisher and writer. After working as a curator at the Tate, Courtauld and Hayward galleries in London, in 2008 she moved sideways into art book publishing, first as Commissioning Editor at Thames & Hudson, then as Executive Editor at Tate Publishing and subsequently as Director of HENI Books, a small independent arts publisher.
Her own writing includes a bestselling book on British Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry (3rd edition, 2020), What is Contemporary Art? (2012), a children’s guide to the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and essays in a number of other books including Body of Art (2015) and Alfred Cohen: An American Artist in Europe (2020).
Her most recent piece of writing – on her experiences on and after 7 October while living in Israel – was published in Jewish Realities after 7 October (werkraum Berlin, 2025). She is now in the midst of setting up a new publishing house focused on Jewish and Israeli voices, due to launch in late 2026.