What is Beauty?

Synopsis: Artist and writer Matthew Collings presents an exploration of the subject of beauty in art, as he wonders if beauty is only in the eye of the beholder, or if there is something more universal we can say about it? Collings takes the viewer on an illustrated tour of ten of his favourite beauty experiences from the history of art. The works of art he chooses each illustrate one of the principles which he believes underpin and explain the pleasure we get from beautiful art. The pieces he chooses span the history of recorded art, from the prehistoric cave paintings of the Dordogne to the hi-tech super-modernity of a Norman Foster-designed bridge in southern France, and from some of the indisputable masterpieces of the Renaissance to more contentious examples from the world of contemporary art. Collings’s list includes works by Piero della Francesca, Michelangelo, Magritte, Gauguin and American artist Robert Rauschenberg, amongst others .
Language: English
Country: Great Britain
Year of release: 2012
Year of production: 2009
Notes: First broadcast on BBC2 on 14/11/2009.
Subjects: Art
Keywords: aesthetics; art appreciation; art criticism; art history; Foster, Norman; Gauguin, Paul (1848-1904); Magritte, René (1898-1967); Piero della Francesca (1420-1492); Rauschenberg, Robert; cave art

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British Universities Film & Video Council