Great paintings challenge us to understand them, to penetrate their mysteries, and to appreciate their riches. But within the vast history of art, there exist only a small number of paintings that transcend the traditional role of art to become cultural signifiers—works that allow us to comprehend more deeply the world and our place within it.
So what distinguishes one of these select masterworks? Dazzling in their visual impact and their grip on the imagination, the world's greatest paintings
- challenge the conventions of the art of their times, extending or transforming the painter's visual language and broadening the impact of art in Western societies;
- serve as visual anchors of faith, politics, philosophy, mythology, literature, and every phase and aspect of social history; and
- depict human life in visions of enduring power, reflecting and affecting the times and cultures in which they were created.
Now, in 24 illuminating lectures, The World's Greatest Paintings leads you in a compelling discovery of some of the most significant paintings in Western art. Taking you from the 14th century to the 20th, distinguished art historian and veteran Great Courses Professor William Kloss reveals a group of works that, in his expert judgment, rank among the greatest paintings ever made.
The World's Greatest Paintings explores one of the supreme legacies of human life, opening rich perspectives on Western civilization through your encounter with these daring and sublime works of art. Taking his cue from the deeper motives that inspired these great works, Professor Kloss uses pictorial analysis to bring you directly into the presence of the extraordinary, elemental power of these paintings—their power to astonish, to uplift, to unsettle, to ultimately shake our sense of reality, leading us to richer domains of experience and of the appreciation of life.
