‎The Art of Russia - Apple TV

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Russia has always been preoccupied with icons and an examination of its art reveals a lot about a country in flux. In this Russian art documentary series, Andrew Graham-Dixon examines the ‘great age of the icon’ from Our Lady of Vladimir to the work of Andrei Rublev and its portraits of Stalin and sculptures of Putin. An extraordinary portrait of the art scene and the history of Russia.

Documentary · 2009 · 52 min

Starring Andrew Graham-Dixon

EPISODE 1

Out of the Forest

Medieval Russia could be a terrifying place. On a mission to unearth the untold story of its art, historian Andrew Graham-Dixon criss-crosses its epic landscape, alighting at the monastery founded by Ivan the Terrible where his favorite forms of torture found inspiration in religious art. But there’s light here, too – charting the origins of the Russian icon from its roots in Byzantium.

51 min · Dec 9, 2009
EPISODE 2

Roads to Revolution

It’s a journey of extraordinary beauty and surprise. The moment when Russia changed from a nation of aristocratic excess to a hotbed of revolution, and its art transformed with it. Andrew Graham-Dixon charts the evolution of Russian art – from monuments to the absolutism of the tsars, the precious detail of diamond-encrusted Faberge eggs, to the stark, radical paintings of the avant garde.

51 min · Dec 16, 2009
EPISODE 3

Smashing the Mould

From post-revolutionary posters to art under Putin, British historian Andrew Graham-Dixon takes us on a trip through Russian art. He roots through portraits of Stalin that are no longer in public view, sees how the Moscow Metro transformed into a public gallery, and ends with the chaotic art of Putin’s Russia – from sculptures of the leader to the insides of a giant erotic apple.

49 min · Dec 23, 2009

Art of Russia Trailer

Documentary · 2 min

Andrew Graham-Dixon

Host