The Art Mysteries with Waldemar Januszczak

Vile Bodies

2025

Documentary miniseries about contemporary artists who create challenging views of the human body. One of a 3-part series exploring how contemporary photography is challenging some of our deepest-held taboos about the human body. "American photographer Joel-Peter Witkin discusses his dark visions of human bodies.

Art Traffickers: Treasures Stolen from the Tombs

2025

Through a combination of interviews and studio reconstructions, recount the gripping stories behind those who have excavated and stolen masterpieces.

Painting Birds with Jim and Nancy Moir

2025

Comedic ornithological series, Painting Birds with Jim and Nancy Moir will follow prolific artist Jim and his wife Nancy as they explore some of Britain’s best beauty spots, joined along the way by a few famous friends. Their challenge? Create an original piece of bird art celebrating the unique species native to that region over the course of a weekend. Accompanied in each episode by local twitchers, artists and conservation experts, Jim, and Nancy will be guided through forest and fen as they venture through wild countryside and local bird sanctuaries to gather inspiration. They’ll spend meditative weekends sketching and painting their feathery subjects, tackling everything from grouse to goshawks and bitterns to bearded tits.

Treasures of Ancient Rome

2025

Treasures of Ancient Rome is a 2012 three-part documentary written and presented by Alastair Sooke. The series was produced by the BBC, and originally aired in September 2012 on BBC Four. In the documentary Sooke sets out to "debunk the myth that Romans didn't do art and were unoriginal". This is based on the view that Romans heavily incorporated Greek style in their art, and hence produced nothing new or original. Sooke has received some criticism from the media owing to the fact that there is no consensus among academics on this topic, and hence no 'myth' exists in the first place.

Tate Britain's Great Art Walks

2025

Danny Baker, Simon Callow, Richard E Grant, Cerys Matthews, Miriam Margolyes and Michael Sheen follow in the footsteps of their favourite British artists.

The Legends of Paris: A Tale of the 19th Century Artistic Scene

2025

During the turbulent 19th century, a number of brilliant French artists developed the Romantic movement in Paris: writers Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas, George Sand, Honoré de Balzac and Charles Baudelaire, painter Eugène Delacroix and composer Hector Berlioz, among others, changed the way of looking at art and created enduring works that have inspired the world to this day.

How to Look at and Understand Great Art

2025

Contemplate the "anti-art" spirit of Dadaism, its nihilistic yet humorous indictment of civilization and bizarre use of unconventional media. In the sensibility of Surrealism, observe its compelling focus on the subconscious and two substyles - dream imagery, with its juxtaposition of objects and settings, and "automatic drawing," eliciting unplanned images from the unconscious.

L'Amour à l'Oeuvre

2025

art21

2025

Contemporary artists describe their work and discuss why and how they do it. The programs are grouped according to themes of place, spirituality, identity and consumption. A PBS series, educational resource, archive, and history of contemporary art, Art21: Art in the Twenty-First Century premiered in 2001 and is now broadcast in over 50 countries worldwide. Premiering a new season every two years, Art21 is the only series on United States television to focus exclusively on contemporary visual art and artists.

Handmade in Mexico

2025

An intricate look at the creation process of three Mexican art forms.

Museums in Quarantine

2025

Series that explores national museum collections at a time of enforced closure.

A History of Art in Three Colours

2025

Dr James Fox explores how, in the hands of artists, the colours gold, blue and white have stirred our emotions, changed the way we behave and even altered the course of history.

How Art Made The World

2025

Nigel Spivey reveals how the images which surround us today come from the ancient world. It's an epic journey spanning five continents and a hundred thousand years of history.

And We Danced

2025

The Australian Ballet has evolved to become our nation's most treasured performing arts company and an icon of dance. 'And We Danced' looks back to reveal what has shaped this world-class institution and made it uniquely ours.

The Art of Japanese Life

2025

Dr James Fox looks at the art and culture of Japan.