Extras
Examine the formative role of art and the creative imagination in forging of humanity.
Official Trailer
A Syrian museum curator sacrificed his life trying to save artifacts in Palmrya.
The Protector of Civilization
An Early Step on the Road to Civilization
Cave paintings in Castillo Spain represent some of the first paintings made by humans.
An Early Step on the Road to Civilization
This 25,000 year-old sculpture found in France represents the dawn of the idea of beauty.
The Lady of Brassempouy
Athenian vase painters recorded and then re-enforced ideas of what wives were meant to do.
Recording Social Norms
Our compulsion to create images of ourselves is a defining artistic motif of humanity.
The Most Enduring Art Form
The Conquistadors attempted to eradicate all traces of indigenous Mexican culture.
The Day of the Dead
Episode 3 Preview | God and Art
Consider how religion has inspired art and art has inspired divine representation.
Episode 3 Preview | God and Art
A spectacular place where the symbolism of the sacred mountain is embodied in art.
The Sacred Mountain
Maria Sibylla's Encounter with the Natural World
Maria Sibylla's illustrations brought to light the true life cycle of insects.
Maria Sibylla's Encounter with the Natural World
Paving the Way for Maruyama Okyo's Masterpiece
"Cracked Ice" combines everything Okyo knew from both Eastern and Western traditions.
Paving the Way for Maruyama Okyo's Masterpiece
Episode 4 Preview | Encounters
See how art became the great interface when distant cultures met for the first time.
Episode 4 Preview | Encounters
The riches intended to buy off the Spanish only intensified their lust for gold.
Montezuma and Cortes
Building the Suleymaniye Mosque
Mimar Sinar always felt destined for something greater than building bridges.
Building the Suleymaniye Mosque
Episode 5 Preview | Renaissances
Travel east and west— to Renaissance Italy and the contemporaneous Islamic empires.
Episode 5 Preview | Renaissances
The Distinction Between Craft and Genius
The Renaissance creates a contrast between ars and invenio.
The Distinction Between Craft and Genius
Artemisia's Most Subversive Work
Artemisia rebels against any notion that women shouldn't speak until spoken to.
Artemisia's Most Subversive Work
Episode 6 Preview | Paradise on Earth
Explore one of humanity’s deepest artistic urges: the depiction of nature.