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Michelangelo
Michelangelo was known as il divino, (in English, “the divine one”) and it is easy for us to see why.
The Medici collect the Americas
After Columbus landed on Hispaniola in 1492, items from the Americas were shipped to Europe where they were perceived as exotic items of wonder and fascination.
1. A brief history of the art museum
How did cabinets of curiosities become temples to the Enlightenment? Explore the fascinating history of museums.
2. Museums and politics: the Louvre, Paris
Art museums and politics have a long and complex relationship; nowhere is this more apparent than the Louvre.
3. Art Museums and (Art) Objects
"It is to kill art to make history of it" — the neutralizing effect of the art museum.
4. Artists in and against the museum
Just as museums have nurtured artistic creativity, they have also become the target of serious critique from artists themselves.
5. The changing social functions of art museums
From privately owned collections to blockbuster exhibitions for the public, museums continue to evolve.
6. Looking at Art Museums
Far from being neutral, museum are deeply rooted in a thicket of political, sociological, and ideological histories.
Gentile da Fabriano, Adoration of the Magi (reframed)
Brilliant golden brocades. Psuedo-Arabic. Turbans. Leopards and lions. The Adoration of the Magi speaks to the global flow of goods at this time.
The Shōsōin Repository and its treasure
Shōsōin repository held nine thousand artifacts from China, Southeast Asia, Iran, and the Middle East—connecting ancient Japan to the cultural trade of the Eurasian continent.
Mestre Valentim, Passeio Publico, Rio de Janeiro
The first public park in Brazil and a major urban planning commission awarded to an artist of African descent.
Inventing “America,” The Engravings of Theodore de Bry
De Bry's images of the Americas affirm and assert a sense of European superiority.