Great Art • 2018 - 2019 • 13 episodes • 12h:15m
Great Art is introduced by curator and broadcaster Tim Marlow, Artistic Director of The Royal Academy of Arts, and features a host of eminent art experts, providing the perfect guides to history's artistic greats. The series is adapted (edited) from full-length films originally released in cinemas under Exhibition on Screen and broadcast on Sky Arts.
We start with an immersive journey into the life and art of Venice's famous view-painter Canaletto. The film also offers the chance to step inside two official royal residences - Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle - to learn more about the artist and Joseph Smith, the man who introduced Canaletto to Britain. The programme visits some of the sites immortalised in Canaletto's views, from the Rialto Bridge to the Piazza San Marco, and the Palazzo Ducale to the Church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo. Featuring contributions from Royal Collection curators and the world's leading experts in Venetian history.
S1E1 • 2018 • Design
Monet, Cezanne, Degas and Renoir are some of the world's most popular artists. Their works, and that of their contemporaries, fetch tens of millions of dollars around the globe. Who were they and how exactly did they paint? To help answer these questions, this film focuses on the man credited with inventing impressionism as we know it - 19th-century Parisian art collector Paul Durand-Ruel. It was his brave decision to back these radical artists and then, on the verge of bankruptcy, to exhibit them in New York in 1886 that created impressionism as we know it. Thanks to his sales to enlightened wealthy Americans that subsequently filled US galleries with impressionist masterworks, Durand-Ruel kept impressionism alive at a time when it faced complete failure. This film tells his remarkable story, along with that of the impressionists themselves.
S1E2 • 2018 • Design
Every Rembrandt exhibition is eagerly anticipated, but a once-in-a-lifetime show at London's National Gallery and Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum that took 15 years to prepare was remarkable. With exclusive and privileged access to both galleries, this film documents this landmark exhibition while interweaving Rembrandt's life story with behind-the-scenes preparations at these world-famous institutions. Rembrandt is the greatest artist that ever lived to many, and this film seeks to explore the truth.
S1E4 • 2018 • Design
Widely considered Britain's most popular artist, David Hockney is a global sensation with exhibitions in London, New York, Paris and beyond, attracting millions of visitors worldwide. Now entering his ninth decade, Hockney shows absolutely no evidence of slowing down or losing his trademark boldness. Featuring intimate and in-depth interviews with Hockney himself, this revealing documentary captures the voice of the artist over five years and focuses on two of his blockbuster exhibitions.
S2E1 • 2018 • Creativity
Vincent van Gogh's life has long captured the imagination, but who was he really? Tim Marlow delves into his fascinating and sometimes deeply troubled world.
S2E2 • 2018 • Creativity
After 500 years Bosch's paintings still shock and fascinate us, but what inspired the man behind these haunting works? Where did his unconventional and timeless creations come from? How did he bridge the medieval and Renaissance world? Why do his strange and fantastical paintings resonate with people now more than ever? Discover the answers to these questions and more with this remarkable documentary, presented by Tim Marlow.
S2E3 • 2018 • Creativity
Focuses on the sell-out exhibition at The Royal Academy of Arts, depicting the craft of one of the all-time great artists, the 'father of modern art', Edouard Manet. Spanning this enigmatic and, at times, controversial artist's career, the programme gives a fascinating exploration and detailed biography of the momentous painter and his environment in a rapidly changing 19th-century Paris.
S2E4 • 2018 • Creativity
Gillian Anderson narrates the story of how American artists, inspired by French masters, created an art movement which lasted for 40 years.
S2E5 • 2018 • Creativity
Pablo Picasso is one of the greatest artists of all time. But where did this all begin? What made Picasso in the first place? Young Picasso visits Malaga, Barcelona and Paris, and explores their influence on Picasso, focusing on specific artworks from these early years - up to the ground-breaking and hugely significant Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. How did he rise to such great heights?
S3E1 • 2019 • Creativity
Discover Spain's celebrated artist with this cinematic tour de force based on the National Gallery's blockbuster exhibition Goya: The Portraits. The film uses the exhibition to look in depth at Goya's eventful life and, through extensive location footage and Goya's revealing letters, the film builds a fascinating portrait of the painter and the extraordinary world he painted.
S3E2 • 2019 • Creativity
In 2013, all of Norway celebrated the 150th anniversary of the birth of Edvard Munch, one of the towering figures of modern art. It was hailed a 'once-in-a-lifetime show'. This film goes behind the scenes to show the process of putting the exhibition together, as well as providing an in-depth biography of a man who lived from the mid-19th century right through to the German occupation of Norway in the Second World War.
S3E3 • 2019 • Creativity
This film takes a magical and widely travelled journey to discover how different contemporaries of Monet built and cultivated modern gardens to explore expressive motifs, abstract colour, decorative design and utopian ideas.
S3E4 • 2019 • Creativity
Described by Picasso and Matisse as 'the father of us all', Cezanne is considered one of the greatest artists of all time. Despite this, Paul Cezanne remains somewhat unknown, somewhat misunderstood. Yet one can't appreciate 20th-century art without understanding the genius of Cezanne and this film reveals the true man.
S3E5 • 2019 • Creativity