The Private Life of a Masterpiece Season 3 Episodes

Episode 1

Liberty Leading the People

Sat, Jan 1, 200550 mins

Artists, academics, and critics discuss the historical origins, original reception, and slow climb to critical acclaim for Eugene Delacroix's painting commemorating the Revolution of 1830, "Liberty Leading the People."

Episode 2

Francisco Goya: The Third of May 1808

Mon, Jan 10, 200549 mins

"The Third of May 1808" by Francisco Goya (1746-1828) commemorated the execution of Spanish revolutionaries by Napoleon's invading French Army. The 1814 painting is placed in its historical context and hailed as a masterpiece of political art.

Episode 3

Renoir: Dance at the Moulin de la Galette, Montmart

49 mins

'Dance at the Moulin de la Galette' brims over with joie de vivre and the pleasures of a Sunday afternoon. This 1876 painting by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) and its lesser-known twin are celebrated by art aficionados and historians.

Episode 4

Rembrandt Van Rijn: The Night Watch

49 mins

An appreciation of Rembrandt's 1642 painting "The Night Watch," featuring the Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq and Lt. William van Ruytenburch. The iconic painting's creation and history are detailed by art historians and critics.

Episode 5

Sandro Botticelli: La Primavera

49 mins

Sandro Botticelli's 'La Primavera' is one of art history's most hotly debated paintings. Created in the 1480s and rediscovered only in the 19th century, historians and critics weigh in on the enigmatic painting's origin and meaning.

Episode 6

Katsushika Hokusai: The Great Wave

49 mins

Created as "disposable art" circa 1830, the woodblock print of "The Great Wave" by 70-year-old Katsushika Hokusai has earned acclaim and a place of honor in the art world. Scholars and critics discuss the work's creation and wide influence.

Episode 7

Vincent van Gogh: Sunflowers

Episode 8

Edgar Degas: Little Dancer Aged Fourteen

The statue of the young girl in a real ballet dress is often seen today just as a pretty image of dancer making one of the classic moves of ballet. But to the people who first saw the statue when it was unveiled it was a dangerous, even disgraceful, portrayal of a degenerate girl little more than a whore.

Episode 9

Pablo Picasso: Les Demoiselles d'Avignon

Episode 10

James McNeill Whistler: Whistler's Mother