Although they are presented in the guise of European aristocrats, kings and emperors, many of Wiley’s models are often young men from Harlem.
art-appreciation
All artists are influenced by the styles and media of others, even those who stridently claim otherwise.
Copying as innovation and resistance
Byzantine icons strike many viewers as repetitive. Their similarity, though, is by careful design.
Copying — spotlight: Virgin Hodegetria
An imagined garden teeming with curious creatures and bizarre structures. What are we to think?
Spotlight — Hieronymus Bosch, The Garden of ...
A cross-cultural exploration of gardens, whether real or imagined, as spaces designed to provide pleasing, immersive environments.
Gardens as pleasurable microcosms: comparisons and connections
A Chinese garden in which each perspective was carefully orchestrated to achieve beauty and a sense of pleasure for the visitor.
Spotlight — the Garden of the Humble ...
A brief introduction to learning to "Look at this!"
Introduction to Look at this: an art ...
The emperor's terracotta army was intended to demonstrate his power in this life, and to extend it into the world of the dead.
Power: spotlight — The Terracotta Army of ...
From the earliest of history to the modern period, works of art and architecture have been designed to convey the power of rulers.
Power: comparisons and connections
Volcanos, storms, the wrath of God, and the pleasures of love...
Nature: comparisons and connections
Nature is often used as a metaphor for all elements of our world—natural and human.
Nature: spotlight — Sesshu Toyo’s Winter Landscape
Humans have imagined concepts of the supernatural from our earliest moments.
Religion: comparisons and connections
The most recognizable prehistoric works of art are cave paintings—often located deep within narrow passageways and larger caverns.
Browse Smarthistory images for teaching & learning!
