Eight masterpieces. Eight big names who changed the world. An electrifying feast of art.

Stream Simon Schama's Power of Art on BBC Select

Art is so much more than pretty pictures. It has the power to move, shock, inform and transform.

In this groundbreaking and award-winning series, art historian Simon Schama attempts to illustrate the sheer force of the visual image via eight iconic masterpieces. These works were often derided or dismissed when first created, but they went on to change the way we look at the world.

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Nature And Us: A History Through Art

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Rembrandt

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Gauguin: The Full Story

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Oceans Apart: Art and the Pacific

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The Man Who Shot Tutankhamun

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Van Gogh: Painted with Words

Innovative, powerful docudrama exploring the work and passions of artist Vincent Van Gogh.

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Ugly Beauty

Can a dead shark ever be considered beautiful? Or is it our imaginations that are lacking?

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The Genius of Carl Faberge

Would you spend $100 million on eggs? You might if they were Faberge.

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The High Art of the Low Countries

Size doesn’t matter. How one small region spawned the greatest artists of all time.

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The Art of Spain

Territory, politics and religious conflict: the untold history of Spain’s cultural legacy.

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Art of Scandinavia

Scandi noir? Does Scandinavian art deserve its dark reputation?

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Art of China

Historian Andrew Graham-Dixon marvels at a millennia of Chinese art

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Art of France

A stunning journey through the history of French art

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“Who are you?” is a surprisingly difficult question. Artist Grayson Perry seeks an answer.

Stream War Art with Eddie Redmayne on BBC Select

War Art with Eddie Redmayne

Academy Award winning actor Eddie Redmayne discovers the artists who saved lives during WW1

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The World's Greatest Paintings

What makes a particular artwork an iconic masterpiece? Andrew Marr investigates.

Stream The Beauty of Anatomy on BBC Select

The Beauty of Anatomy

Think your body’s a work of art? 17th-century Dutch anatomists would agree.

Stream Apples, Pears And Paint - How to Make a Still Life Paintingon BBC Select on BBC Select

Apples Pears And Paint: How To Make A Still Life Painting

What can still life images of ordinary objects tell us about the artists who created them?

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The Impressionists

Who were the Impressionists and what fueled their desire to alter the direction of art?

Stream Vincent Van Gogh - The Full Story on BBC Select

Vincent: The Full Story

What do we really know about Vincent van Gogh, arguably the world’s most famous artist?

Stream The Art Mysteries on BBC Select

The Art Mysteries

Think you know these works by Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cezanne and Seurat? Think again.

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A Brief History of Graffiti

From cave art to street art - what drives human beings to draw on the walls?

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Hokusai: Old Man Crazy To Paint

You may not know his name but you’ll instantly recognize Hokusai’s most famous work.

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Soup Cans and Superstars: How Pop Art Changed the World

Obsessed with sex, surface and celebrity. Was pop art radically ahead of its time?

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The Story of Women and Art

Restless, resistant and radical. How female artists transformed art from the outside

Bright Lights, Brilliant Minds - A Tale of Three Cities on BBC Select

Bright Lights, Brilliant Minds

Paris, Vienna and New York. The seismic influence of three cities on the artistic world.

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The Man Who Shot New York

More than just a photographer, New Yorker Harold Feinstein had an unquenchable thirst for life.

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The Romantic Revolution

Wild visionaries and imaginative truth seekers whose radical ideas still resonate today.

Stream Grayson Perry - Art Club on BBC Select

Grayson Perry's Art Club

Artist Grayson Perry releases a torrent of quarantine-creativity in his lockdown art club.

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Grayson Perry: Rites of Passage

Our traditions don’t help us. Artist Grayson Perry is on a quest to design ones that do.

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Grayson Perry's Big American Roadtrip

Britain’s most unpredictable artist, Grayson Perry, sits America down for its portrait.

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In Search of Frida Kahlo

Frida Kahlo’s face is iconic. Musician Emeli Sandé uncovers the woman behind the art.

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Shock of The Nude

Peek behind the fig leaf to find the truth behind the nude in art.

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From the dawn of civilization to the emergence of modern-day superpowers, BBC Select answers all the questions. If you live in the US or Canada, you can sign up to watch these BBC history documentaries today.

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Napoleon

The story of Napoleon

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D-Day

Explore the story behind the biggest seaborne invasion in history.

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Armada: The Untold Story

The fierce naval conflict between England and Spain that changed the face of Europe.

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A Life In Ten Pictures: Muhammad Ali

Ten photographs show a different side of boxer Muhammad Ali

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Moon Landing

Relive the drama and danger of the mission to the moon in this thrilling documentary

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The Industrial Revolution

Unraveling the mysteries behind the Industrial Revolution in 19th century Britain

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Death Camp Treblinka

Those who survived the Treblinka Nazi extermination camp tell their story

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Italy's Invisible Cities

The hidden history of Italian city life is uncovered.

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Hiroshima: The Real History

It ended World War II, but at what cost? Hiroshima unraveled.

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BBC at War

This enthralling series asks, how much did World War II shape the personality of the BBC?

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1945: The Savage Peace

Cruelty towards Germans began to escalate after World War II.

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100 Days to Victory

How did the Allies turn the tide and win the First World War?

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Who Were The Greeks?

The ancient Greeks were brutal, brilliant and still influence the way we live today.

Watch Nature And Us: A History Through Art on BBC Select

Nature And Us: A History Through Art

In the age of climate crisis, what can art teach us about our relationship with nature?

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The Bible's Buried Secrets

Can contemporary historical evidence confirm stories from the Bible?

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Treasures of the Indus

Ancient treasures are used to chart the fascinating history of India and Pakistan.

Nuremberg Nazis on Trial Documentary

Nuremberg: Nazis on Trial

Could the Nuremberg trials help shed light on the motivations of leading Nazis?

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Edward VIII: Britain's Traitor King

The amazing story of the former British King who may have had Nazi sympathies during WWII.

The Art of Gothic

Why were Brits in the 19th-century obsessed with art that was horrific, macabre and weird?

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The Body Beautiful: Ancient Greeks, Good Looks and Glamour

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Oceans Apart: Art and the Pacific

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The Silk Road

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Confucius

The remarkable story of a great thinker who helped to form a nation and shape the world.

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Eugenics: Science's Greatest Scandal

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Masters of Money

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The Wild West

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The High Art of the Low Countries

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Simon Schama's Shakespeare and Us

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Rallying: The Killer Years

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Ancient Worlds

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Ancient Treasures with Bettany Hughes

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The Crusades BBC Documentary

The Crusades

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Countdown to War

The story of the 3 days between the Nazis invading Poland and the beginning of World War II.

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The Six Queens of Henry VIII

Rediscover the Queens who shaped a King & his legacy in The Six Queens of Henry VIII, BBC's new look at the King's infamous wives.

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History of Mother Earth: Gaia Uncovered

In space, you can hear the Earth scream... History of Mother Earth: Gaia Uncovered

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Nixon in the Den

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Blitz Spirit with Lucy Worsley

Hitler's Terrifying Battle of Britain Bombing. Blitz Spirit with Lucy Worsley, BBC's leading historian

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Africa and Britain: A Forgotten History

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Harry Potter - A History of Magic

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Rome: Empire Without Limit with Mary Beard

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Russia 1917: Countdown to Revolution

Three men rise from obscurity to unleash a bloody revolution that changed history forever.

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The Persians: A History of Iran

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Secret Cities

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Racism: A History

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Filthy Cities

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Queen Victoria and her Nine Children

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Archaeology: A Secret History

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Vienna: Empire, Dynasty and Dream

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The Birth of Empire - The East India Company on BBC Select

The Birth of Empire: The East India Company

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Genius of the Ancient World

The original free thinkers. The stories of the Buddha, Confucius and Socrates.

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Genius of the Modern World

Emigres, recluses, enemies of the state. How Marx, Nietzsche and Freud changed the world.

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American History's Biggest Fibs

American history is fake, fact? Historian Lucy Worlsey delves deeper into US mythology.

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Suffragettes

The violence, valor and sacrifices made by the women fighting for their right to vote.

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Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

People as property: historian David Olusoga on the untold stories of British slavery.