Still Life with Apples and Peaches by Paul Cezanne, ca. 1905 (The National Gallery of Art)
Across the centuries, there are major themes in the history of art that continue to appear and reappear. Portrayals of love, the still-life form, and the use of perspective and light and shade are a few notable examples that artists have interpreted in styles ranging from the naturalistic to surreal.
Art historian Joseph Cassar examines important masterworks within selected genres and offers a new way to understand and appreciate the similarities—and the uniqueness—among artists and the cultural norms that influenced their choices.
June 4 Love
Artists have represented the theme of love in all its complexity. Discover the hidden meanings in works from artists including Giotto, Caravaggio, Canova, Rodin, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Robert Indiana.
June 11 Perspective
Explore how perspective has been used as an independent motif in works such as Pool in the Garden, an Egyptian tomb painting from 1400 B.C.E.; frescoes in the Villa of Publius Fannius in Pompeii from the mid-first century C.E.; and paintings by artists including Massaccio, Richard Diebenkorn, and Richard Estes.
June 18 Still-Life
Cassar defines still-life paintings as a genre, discussing examples including Still-Life with Glass Bowl and Fruit, made in Pompeii, 63 B.C.E. and works by Caravaggio, Paul Cezanne, Vincent van Gogh, Georges Braque, and Morton Wayne.
June 25 Light and Shade
Light and shade has long been a subject in Western art. The session highlights works by artists including Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Georges de la Tour, Vermeer, Monet, Giorgio de Chirico, and Edward Hopper.
4 sessions
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