Gold, glass, and marble dazzle the eye in this 6th-century church. High above us, Emperor Justinian presides. San Vitale and the Justinian Mosaic by Dr. Allen Farber
His nudity references classical antiquity, but David embodies the ideals and concerns of 15th-century Florence. Donatello, David by Dr. Heather Graham
What’s that dog yapping about? This mischievous woman throws caution—and her slipper—to the wind. Jean-Honoré Fragonard, The Swing by Dr. Ashley Bruckbauer
Where’s Goliath? David scans for his enemy. This colossal sculpture is itself a giant of High Renaissance art. Michelangelo, David by Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris
The female nude emerged as a genre in the Renaissance. Titian, Venus of Urbino by Dr. James R. Jewitt
Kruger’s art is characterized by a visual wit sharpened in the trenches of the advertising world. Barbara Kruger, Untitled (Your gaze hits the ... by Dr. Thomas Folland
Explore the complex power dynamics of images of the female body in the Renaissance Sex, Power, and Violence in the Renaissance ... by Dr. Jill Burke
Throughout Europe women’s relegation to the domestic sphere was rooted in Christian tradition that placed blame for humanity’s fall from grace upon Eve, the first woman. Introduction to gender in renaissance Italy by Dr. Heather Graham
In the distance, lightning strikes. What does it mean? Poetic and evocative, this painting invites interpretation. Giorgione, The Tempest by Dr. James R. Jewitt
The Conceptionists were founded for elite, pure-blooded Spanish women. This nun just took her vows. Crowned Nun Portrait of Sor María de ... by Dr. Lauren Kilroy-Ewbank and Dr. Beth Harris
A new, modern culture of shopping and ready-made clothes were part of women’s new urban mobility. When the department store was new: Elizabeth ... by Dr. Annelise Madsen, The Art Institute of Chicago and Dr. Beth Harris
Manet turns the tables—or in this case, the bar—on how we view painting. Édouard Manet, A Bar at the Folies-Bergère by Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker
Virtue, or vice? This seated woman is an icon of domesticity, but the man’s money may tempt her away from work. Judith Leyster, The Proposition by Dr. Saskia Beranek
The subjects appear quiet and austere, yet Hals’s expressive use of paint animates this group portrait. Frans Hals, The Women Regents by Olivia Nicole Miller
Does a portrait need to be an accurate visual representation of the subject? Marsden Hartley, Portrait of a German Officer by Dr. Bryan Zygmont
De Kooning painted image after image on this canvas, continually wiping it down and starting again. Willem de Kooning, Woman, I by Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker
With a complex, multi-figure composition, this monumental sculpture captures a moment from ancient Roman history. Giambologna, Abduction of a Sabine Woman by Dr. Shannon Pritchard
Was it a diplomatic gift? Is it even a Rubens? Many questions surround this work; technical analysis can help. Peter Paul Rubens, Venus, Mars and Cupid by Helen Hillyard
Female painters were rare in sixteenth-century Italy. In self-portraits, Sofonisba made sure to appear virtuous. Sofonisba Anguissola by Dr. Lauren Kilroy-Ewbank
Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, emerges from her bath, but what did her nudity mean to the Greeks? Capitoline Venus (copy of the Aphrodite of ... by Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris