Civilisations

The idea of “civilization” has always been discussed. At the heart of these debates lies a major question: how did our ancestors—from ancient times to the present day—depict themselves and others, both people and gods? The outstanding historian Mary Beard examines how art was formed and created by people who made it. How did we look at these images? Why were they sometimes so controversial? In the first part, she explores how the human figure was portrayed in one of the earliest works of art in the world—from giant stone heads carved by Olmecs of Central America to statues and clay objects of the ancient Greeks, and to the terracotta army of China’s first emperor. She explains how one specific version of representing the human body—tracing back to the ancient world—still affects (and sometimes distorts) how people in the West see their own culture and the cultures of others. Throughout this story, she is interested not only in artists who created images, but also in those who used them, viewed them, and interpreted them. In other words: how do we look? In the second part, Mary Beard turns to the relationship between art and religion. For centuries, religion inspired art—from the Hindu temple in Angkor Wat to the Christian mosaics of Ravenna and the exquisite calligraphy of Islamic mosques.