Visual Arts: Art of the Western World

Art of the Western World is a documentary series presented by Michael Wood, exploring magnificent masterpieces of the Western world in their cultural and historical settings. The series consists of eighteen episodes, each of which focuses on the artistic contributions of one period in the history of the West, from Ancient Greece to the late 1980s. From the classical ideals in Greek and Roman antiquity, through the Renaissance, to the postmodernism of the late 1980s, the series provides a panorama of 2000 years of architecture, painting and sculpture, and studies the art masterpieces as reflections of the Western culture that produced them.

Transcripts of the episodes from this series are available here.

Traces the origins of humanism and the immortal classical style to Ancient Greece.

Duration: 25:50

Publication Year: 1989

Part 1 - The Classical Ideal

Part 2 - A White Garment of Churches: Romanesque and Gothic

Part 3 - The Early Renaissance

Part 4 - The High Renaissance

Part 5 - Realms of Light: The Baroque

Part 6 - An Age of Reason, An Age of Passion

Part 7 - A Fresh View: Impressionism and Post-Impressionism

Part 8 - Into the Twentieth Century

Part 9 - In Our Own Time