Alcohol is a mood changer, pleasure of the flesh and metaphor for indulgence. It has enhanced European life, stimulated a flood of art, advertising and interior design, generated new objects from the corkscrew to the cocktail shaker and fuelled many vivid celebrations of rites of passage, victories and royal occasions over the past 500 years. From Hogarth to Scarfe, cartoonists have exploited beer and spirits as weapons in an armoury of mockery, painters have depicted the wine-sodden excesses of classical gods, architects have devised grottoes, beer gardens, gin palaces and wine bars; and potters, goldsmiths and glassmakers have designed an extraordinary diversity of bowls and decanters, containers and cases, tankards and glasses, from Faberge's jewelled vodka cups to Meissen wine coolers. "The Art of Drinking" is a celebration and exploration of the extraordinary range of visual and material culture created by entrepreneurs, designers, critics and campaigners.