Art of the Western World

Nigel Spivey reveals how the images which surround us today come from the ancient world. It's an epic journey spanning five continents and a hundred thousand years of history.

Long regarded as mere subjects for amateur or specialist nature photographers, animals are increasingly inspiring art photographers to produce surprising creations, sometimes with a social message. Five photographers present their work and their perspectives on the animal world.

With sumptuous palaces, exquisite artworks and stunning architecture, every great city offers a dizzying multitude of cultural highlights. So what should an art lover see on a flying visit? Art historians Dr Janina Ramirez and Alastair Sooke take us on entertaining and revealing cultural city breaks, offering surprising new insights into famous locations and uncovering hidden gems and untold stories, as they discover how religion, revolution and trailblazing individuals can shape the art - and soul - of a city.

After he's shot in 1968, Andy Warhol begins documenting his life and feelings. Those diaries, and this series, reveal the secrets behind his persona.

Part meditative tutorial, part fireside chat, each episode finds artist John Lurie ensconced at his worktable, where he hones his intricate watercolor techniques and shares his reflections on what he’s learned about life.

Art sous enquête

The Art of Punk, a series of documentaries from MOCAtv, the video channel of Los Angeles’ Museum of Contemporary Art. Emphasizes its focus on, literally, the visual art of punk: its posters, its album art, its T-shirts, and even — un-punk as this may sound — its logos.

Move from inspiration into action with hand-picked experts in home, kitchen, garden and the arts. Whether you're looking to style a room, start a garden or cook a new dish, each class is designed for anyone to roll up their sleeves and try something new.

Comedic ornithological series, Painting Birds with Jim and Nancy Moir will follow prolific artist Jim and his wife Nancy as they explore some of Britain’s best beauty spots, joined along the way by a few famous friends. Their challenge? Create an original piece of bird art celebrating the unique species native to that region over the course of a weekend. Accompanied in each episode by local twitchers, artists and conservation experts, Jim, and Nancy will be guided through forest and fen as they venture through wild countryside and local bird sanctuaries to gather inspiration. They’ll spend meditative weekends sketching and painting their feathery subjects, tackling everything from grouse to goshawks and bitterns to bearded tits.

Andrew Graham-Dixon examines the history of French art, revealing how it emerged from a struggle between tradition and revolution, and rulers and citizens. He compresses centuries of culture into three thematically linked chapters.

Andrew Graham-Dixon explores how a group of 19th-century architects and artists spurned the modern age and turned to Britain's medieval past to create iconic works and buildings.

This four-part history series looks at how Australia has been shaped by its many definitions of home. Historic moments impacted homes, their designs, and the way we live as a society. From economic booms and busts to the fight for Land Rights and recognition, from various cultural migrations to the unrelenting force of nature, emerges a country building its way into the future.

Professor Akbar Ahmed explore the architectural splendor of Islamic heritage and the profound connection between artistry and religious expression in Islam.

Renesančné Slovensko

Robert Hughes tackles the work and lives of three remarkable 20th-century architects: Albert Speer, Mies van der Rohe, and Antonio Gaudi - whose work did so much to shape the modern world. Hughes looks at how each one used space in different ways to express our response, respectively, to the power of religion (Gaudi), the power of the State (Speer), and the power of the corporation (Mies van der Rohe).

An alternative history of the British Isles, told through art. Looking at 1,500 years and eight dramatic turning points, acclaimed artists and thinkers encounter key historic art works from across the UK that have shaped the history of the British Isles and inspired their own work.

In this three-part documentary series Waldemar Januszczak discovers paintings, sculptures and architecture of the Baroque period. Starting from the square of Saint Peter's Basilica in Italy to St Paul's Cathedral in England.

His art changed the way we see the world - now change the way you see the artist. An unflinching look at Picasso's legacy, and the horror and brilliance of what he left behind. Family, friends and experts reassess the tumultuous artistic and personal life of Pablo Picasso, one of the greatest and most provocative artists of all time.

Fotografi

How did an Indian Buddhist shrine influence a Japanese pagoda? How are Italian pigs and cowry shells related to porcelain? Why did the ferocious warriors of Mongolia wear silk underwear? And how did wood block printing bring about a revolution in Japan and in European culture? These intriguing questions are investigated in Artifacts, a series that explores the origins and hidden connections among the art and artifacts of the great cultures and belief systems across Asia - on a journey through time and across continents from India to Thailand, China and Japan - to understand the impact of calligraphy, porcelain, architecture, metallurgy, wood block printing and silk on Asian history and on the history of the world in general.