Masterworks

"The early life of the Italian artist Umberto Boccioni was marked by the excitement and anxiety of departure, which are the subjects in 'Farewells.' The picture was painted in 1911 in Milan where, four years earlier, Boccioni had finally settled at the age of 25. Here Boccioni tries to convey the uncontrollable emotions people feel on parting from each other..."

"This painting by Joan Miró is called 'Dutch Interior I.' To begin with, it is very difficult to see why it has this particular title. Our first impression is simply of a pattern of coloured shapes and lines, now and then combining and intertwining and then once again separating, and it is only gradually that we begin to detect more than just a pretty pattern..."

'Christina's World' shows a particular place, a desolate stretch of the coastline in Maine, part of his world, a region where Andrew Wyeth spent much of his life. He freely admits that it is not an attractive region, but it is one he likes in spite of its scenery. It is the people who live there and the names they give to houses, hills and roads that move him to include it in all of his work...'

This programme travels to Ghana to explore the art and culture of the Fante people, in particular their vibrant and allegorical sacred flags. These colourful appliqued and embroidered banners were originally used as the regalia for small military companies which existed in towns and villages along the Fante coast for hundreds of years.

"Richard Lindner's picture 'The Meeting' is a very disturbing one. First of all, the space seems far too small for the number of figures the artist includes. They are uncomfortably squashed together: the ceiling grazes the heads of some of them, whilst others are cut off by the lower edge of the picture..."