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Rick Steves’ Europe: Art of the High Middle Ages

Season 12 Episode 1206 | 25m 36s

As Europe passed A.D. 1000, its growing prosperity was reflected in soaring Gothic cathedrals graced with colorful altarpieces, lacy stonework, and radiant stained glass. We visit luxurious castles to see exquisite tapestries showing a new secular love of worldly pleasures and, end in Italy, where pioneering artists like Giotto were mastering realism and pointing the way to the future of art.

Aired: 09/30/23 | Expires: 01/03/24
Distributed nationally by American Public Television
Extras
Join Rick Steves and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra on a spectacular musical journey through Europe.
Join Rick Steves for a "best of Poland" special featuring Kraków, Warsaw, Gdańsk and more.
With Europe as our classroom, Rick shares the essential skills for smart, smooth travel.
Rome’s Altar of Peace and the Trophy of the Alps are fine examples of art as propaganda.
Michelangelo sculpted “David,” painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling, and designed St. Peter’s.
Raphael’s sweet Madonnas set a new standard in High Renaissance painting.
Gothic church design is best illustrated by building one with 13 travelers.
Flemish paintings were happy slice-of-life scenes, feel-good, and affordable.
Oil paints freed artists like Jan van Eyck, Raphael, and Leonardo to raise the bar.
Brueghel was a master of slice-of-life scenes capturing country folk at play.
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Shimmering Impressionist canvases by Monet and Renoir, plus Van Gogh, Gauguin and more.
Roaming Europe, we admire stately Neoclassical buildings and dramatic Romantic paintings.
Early Europeans produce diverse art: from Christians to Muslims and Byzantines to Vikings.
Rome’s rise, as seen in its supersized monuments, colorful mosaics, and marble Caesars.
Greece’s timeless art: Golden Age temples, alluring Venuses, and exuberant Winged Victory.
The turbulent century and its rule-breaking art—Picasso, Surrealism and edgy architecture.
Florence’s bold “rebirth” is powered by the genius of Leonardo, Rafael, and Michelangelo.
From Portugal to Germany, booming economies and new technologies produce exquisite art.
We marvel at Baroque’s over-the-top churches, palaces, bubbly fountains, and theatric art.
We marvel at Stone Age cave paintings, mighty megaliths, and mysterious goddesses.