Overview

This course introduces you to art history and appreciation through the study of five great paintings from the 16th to the 20th centuries. You will learn about the lives of the different painters as well as gaining insights into their different techniques and abilities. In order of their presentation, the artists are: Holbein, Rembrandt, Caravaggio, Turner and Picasso. Holbein’s Portrait of Henry VIII is followed by one of Rembrandt’s self-portraits, painted in old age. Caravaggio’s technique is shown in the painting of David with the Head of Goliath, while the Turner example is The Fighting Temeraire. Picasso’s Old Man with a Guitar is supplemented with an extra work from his Cubist period: Woman Weeping. In this way, we will have covered five centuries of great art. My intention has been to introduce you to art history by means of a small selection of masterpieces. Throughout the course, other works are mentioned, together with the galleries where they are kept and where they can be viewed today. A course of this length and with only five paintings must been seen as a taster rather than an in-depth programme of art history. The course is completion-only and you may request a free e-certificate of completion from me at the end.