Treasure trove of courses at UCSD

University of California San Diego is offering a record 63 courses available for free download on its podcast website this quarter, enough to fill your mp3 player for months to come. But carpe diem, seize the day. Most of these riches will only stay on the website until the end of the quarter (roughly mid-December), [...]

A new Shakespeare portrait?

In case you missed all the recent hoopla about the possibility that a painting of an unknown 17th century nobleman could be a likeness of William Shakespeare, check out Shakespeare Found (iTunes), an interview with Professor Stanley Wells, Chairman of The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
Wells explains why he believes that this portrait, owned by the Cobbe [...]

A different take on the Impressionists

As UCSD Professor William Norman Bryson moves towards the finish line in his course Formations of Modern Art (feed), he turns to the French Impressionists. His (to me) startling contention: the Impressionists were not just painters of light and shadow and beautiful images; they were social critics as well.
His discussion of the Impressionists begins [...]

Art history from UCSD

Update Jan. 2009: This course is no longer available.
UCSD Art historian William Norman Bryson offers a lively and entertaining introduction to the French Impressionists and other moderns in Formations of Modern Art (website, feed). Although the podcasts are audio-only, you can follow along with Bryson’s lecture slides at this website.
The first lecture is a thought-provoking [...]