All upcoming Daytime programs

Discover the power of reflective writing inspired by art guided by the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s Writing Salon, Mary Hall Surface. Inspired by the masterful prints of one of Japan’s most innovative artists, Katsushika Hokusai, and by poetry across time, slow down, look closely, and reflect to explore the metaphor of wind in our world and in our lives.

Overshadowed for many decades, women artists who made important contributions to the Abstract Expressionist movement are finally getting their due. Most notable were five painters whose work was featured in the groundbreaking Ninth Street Art Exhibition of 1951. Art historian Nancy G. Heller examines the art and lives of these “Ninth Street Women,” their relationships with their male counterparts, and the gender-related obstacles they had to overcome to claim their place in a changing art world. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)

The enigmatic boxes created by Joseph Cornell have confounded, astonished, and entranced viewers for decades. These mysterious juxtapositions of ordinary objects have been parsed, interpreted, speculated upon, and simply relished by art historians and museumgoers alike. Art critic Judy Pomeranz examines Cornell’s astonishing life and explores why his iconic boxes continue to deeply touch viewers around the world. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)

It would be hard to challenge the often-repeated claim that Leonardo da Vinci is perhaps the most diversely talented individual ever to have lived. In a day-long seminar, art historian Aneta Georgievska-Shine highlights some of the most remarkable aspects of Leonardo’s life, work, and creative thinking. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1 credit)

Cuneiform, the wedge-shaped script of ancient Mesopotamia, had preserved the stories, science, and secrets of civilizations for millennia—only to have its meaning lost to history. Journalist Joshua Hammer delves into the story of how three unlikely Victorian adventurers unlocked the secrets of cuneiform, illuminating the forgotten voices of the ancient world and offering a glimpse into humanity’s earliest recorded past.

The human brain is constantly working to maintain balance, adapting to life’s turbulence in ways that shape our mental health. But what happens when this balance falters? Neuroscientist Camilla Nord delves into the science of mental health, exploring how our brains strive for equilibrium and how approaches as varied as placebos, recreational drugs, and talk therapy work to restore balance and resilience, as well as how the brain and body interact to foster both physical and mental well-being.

Pablo Picasso reinvented himself every few years with groundbreaking creative developments that would change the course of art. In a 4-part series, art historian Joseph P. Cassar looks at Picasso’s early years, his Blue and the Rose periods, his masterpiece Guernica, and his lifetime of artistic experimentation and innovation marked by playfulness and genius. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1 credit)

At its peak, the Roman empire extended from Britain to the Sahara Desert, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Euphrates River. Yet in 476, the last western Roman emperor was deposed. In a 4-part series, historian David Gwynn analyzes the dramatic events which shaped the decline and fall of the Roman empire in the west, exploring the transformation from the ancient to the medieval world that laid the foundations for modern Europe. This session focuses on the fourth-century Roman empire.

After World War II ended in Europe, participating countries’ responses to the conflict—and what evolved into their remembrances of it—were widely varied. West and East Germany, Italy, France, and the Soviet Union retold or embellished their wartime histories, which downplayed or ignored the support of fascism and the Nazi regime. Writer and former foreign correspondent Adam Tanner reflects on how these nations have come to terms, or not, with their actions in World War II.

Artist Sandro Botticelli’s career flourished in the late 15th-century under the patronage of the Medici family, whose influence is woven throughout much of his work that blends classical themes with contemporary Florentine ideals. However, his trajectory was significantly impacted by the dramatic events of the day, notably the Bonfire of the Vanities, which saw countless artworks condemned as immoral and destroyed, marking a turning point in Botticelli's life and work. Art historian Elaine Ruffolo traces Botticelli’s remarkable journey from his early triumphs as a Medici favorite to his later years shaped by religious zeal and spiritual introspection. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)