The Private Life of a Masterpiece

tv show

poster for The Private Life of a Masterpiece

29 total episodes

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9 seasons

First Aired December 08, 2001

Overview

Private Life of a Masterpiece is a BBC arts documentary series that tells the stories behind great works of art reaching from the Renaissance to modern art. David by Michelangelo, The Scream by Edvard Munch, The Third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya, The Night Watch by Rembrandt van Rijn, Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon by Pablo Picasso, The Annunciation by Jan van Eyck, ... The Art of Painting by Johannes Vermeer. For behind the beautiful canvases and sculptures are tales of political revolution, wartime escapes, massive ego clashes, social scandal, financial wrangling and shocking violence. The series reveals the full and fascinating stories behind famous works of art, not just how they came to be created, but also how they influenced others and came to have a life of their own in the modern world.

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Eugene Delacroix: Liberty Leading the People

Season 5 - Episode 1 - 1h 50m

Air Date

April 02, 2005

Overview

The series that reveals stories behind famous artworks returns, beginning with an examination of Eugene Delacroix 's response to the July revolution of in France. Delacroix's vibrant portrayal of the bare breasted figure of Liberty leading a rabble over a barricade was taken up as a symbol of revolution across the country. Its painter, however, later moaned that the trouble with revolutions was they got in the way of dinner parties.