Silver Spring, MD — Broadcast on PBS, the illuminating nine-part documentary series, Art of the Western World, debuts on DVD from Athena on September 27, 2011. Historian Michael Wood (Legacy, The Story of India) hosts this fascinating overview of painting, sculpture, and architecture, from ancient Greece to the postmodern era. Four years in the making and filmed at over 150 locations in 8 countries, this eye-opening tour through 2,500 years of Western art travels from sun-bleached temples to soaring cathedrals, palaces to villas, galleries to gardens, and Soho’s streets to the Arizona desert. Complemented by close-up views of masterpieces, walks through important buildings, and informative commentary by historians and scholars, the DVD 3-vol. set also includes a 20-page viewer’s guide and biographies of major artists ($59.99, www.AcornOnline.com).

Title, artist, medium, and date—usually that’s the only information offered by museum placards. But as historian Michael Wood demonstrates, art is so much more than paint on canvas or figures chipped from stone. From the bloody revolution that inspired The Death of Marat to the postwar exuberance of Andy Warhol's Campbell’s Soup Cans, Wood reveals how Western art mirrors Western culture, each work forever reflecting the cultural forces, historical events, and social changes that defined its era. Art of the Western World was produced in 1989.

Oxford-educated historian Michael Wood has written numerous books and made dozens of acclaimed documentaries, including Legacy: The Origins of Civilization (released on DVD in March 2010) and The Story of India. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, the U.K.’s leading organization for scholarly study of the past.

Episode 1: The Classical Ideal
Episode 2: A White Garment of Churches: Romanesque and Gothic Art
Episode 3: The Early Renaissance
Episode 4: The High Renaissance
Episode 5: Realms of Light: The Baroque
Episode 6: An Age of Reason, an Age of Passion
Episode 7: A Fresh View: Impressionism and Postimpressionism
Episode 8: Into the 20th Century
Episode 9: In Our Own Time

BONUS FEATURES:

• 20-page viewer’s guide featuring an interview with executive producer Perry Miller Adato; a history of frescoes; articles on the windows of Chartres Cathedral, the Paris salons, pop-art criticism, great artworks lost to history; and timeline of artistic movements.
• Biographies of major artists and of Michael Wood, plus fun facts about oil paints, poems by Michelangelo, and discussion questions at AthenaLearning.com