Works of art are special kinds of historical sources.
Art Institute of Chicago
Whether setting the mood or celebrating the divine, artists play with light. Sometimes, they even sculpt with it.
Light and shadow
What makes paintings feel as deep as the view from a window or as flat as a wall?
Surface and Depth
Artists use various strategies to set up a dynamic relationship between artwork, maker, and viewer.
The Power to Look
The three versions of this bedroom scene may look similar, but technical analysis reveals differences between them.
The Science of Van Gogh’s Bedrooms
From heroes and gods to everyday life, ancient Greek pottery depicted a variety of subjects.
Ancient Greek vase production and the black-figure ...
From heroes and gods to everyday life, ancient Greek pottery depicted a variety of subjects.
Ancient Greek vase production and the black-figure ...
A mosaic is made up of hundreds or even thousands of individual tiles, called tesserae.
Browse Smarthistory images for teaching & learning!