Smart Secrets of Great Paintings — Season 1, Episode 2: The Artist's Studio (1855) by Gustave Courbet

Episode synopsis

Paris shone brightly in the second half of the 19th century, with its fashionable restaurants, and its cabarets and theatres, which provided the spectacle of a carefree society. The industrial revolution produced wealth, and fortunes were amassed and lost. Gustave Courbet's work is politically involved and provocative. It reveals his support for revolutionary movements, and condemns Napoleon III's authoritarian regime. In addition to its critical dimension, the canvas has an air of mystery, and depicts contradictions.

About Smart Secrets of Great Paintings

The great works of the past portray abundant testimonies, and are imbued with secrets and are teeming with mysteries. Beneath the surface of the painting, details awaken, to recount the spirit of the times and the vagaries of History, such as wars, revolutions, economic transformation, scientific discovery, beliefs and schools of thought.

More episodes from Season 1

• E1The Moneylender and his Wife (1514) by Quentin Massys
• E3Bathers at Asniers (1884) by Georges Seurat
• E4Las Meninas (1665) by Diego Velazquez
• E5The Wedding at Cana (1563) by Paolo Veronese
• E6The Martyrdom of Saint Appolonia (1461) by Jean Fouquet
• E7A Lady in Her Bath (1571) by Francois Clouet
• E8Marie-Antoinette de Lorraine-Habsbourg, Queen of France and Her Children (1787) by Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun
• E9Women of Algiers in Their Apartment (1834) by Eugène Delacroix
• E10Colorful Life (1907) by Wassily Kandinsky
• E11Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? 1897, Paul Gauguin
• E12Temptations of St. Anthony, 1501, Hieronymus Bosch
• E13Western Port in Frankfurt am Main, 1916, Ludwig Kirchner