Rick Steves' Europe

Art of the Renaissance

Around 1400, Europe rediscovered the aesthetics of ancient Greece and Rome. This rebirth of classical culture showed itself in the statues, paintings, and architecture of Florence, then spread to Spain, Holland, Germany, and beyond. The Renaissance—from art-loving popes to Leonardo’s Mona Lisa and Michelangelo’s David—celebrated humanism and revolutionized how we think about our world.

Art of the Renaissance

55m 35s

  • Rick Steves’ Europe: Baroque Art: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Rick Steves’ Europe: Baroque Art

    S12 E1209 - 25m 36s

    Forged in Europe’s religious struggles, Baroque art inspired the faithful and dazzled the masses. We start in Rome, with its awe-inspiring St. Peter’s, fleshy Bernini statues and bubbly fountains. In Belgium, we see the dramatic canvases of Rubens. And finally: the ultimate Baroque palace, Versailles, with its chandeliered Hall of Mirrors and vast gardens where nobles played as Revolution brewed.

  • Rick Steves’ Europe: Art of the Renaissance Beyond Florence: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Rick Steves’ Europe: Art of the Renaissance Beyond Florence

    S12 E1208 - 25m 39s

    From Italy, the Renaissance spread across Europe, revolutionizing art. We travel to Spain and Portugal where overseas plunder is transformed into lacy architecture and ethereal paintings by El Greco. In bustling Germany and Belgium, new technologies enable Durer’s mass-produced engravings, Van Eyck’s meticulous oil paintings, Brueghel’s peasants at play, and the futuristic visions of Bosch.

  • Rick Steves’ Europe: Art of the Florentine Renaissance: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Rick Steves’ Europe: Art of the Florentine Renaissance

    S12 E1207 - 25m 18s

    After its medieval struggles, Europe rediscovered the art of the ancients, led by booming Florence. We revel in the bold spirit of the Cathedral’s lofty dome and Botticelli’s sweet Venus. Leonardo da Vinci gives us the iconic Last Supper and enigmatic Mona Lisa. And Michelangelo—sculptor of David, painter of the Sistine, and architect of St. Peter’s—takes the Florentine Renaissance to new heights.

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