Smarthistory

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Smarthistory

At Smarthistory we believe art has the power to transform lives and to build understanding across cultures. Smarthistory brings you into the conversation.

We believe that the brilliant histories of art belong to everyone, no matter their background. Our mission: public art history
At Smarthistory we believe art has the power to transform lives and to build understanding across cultures. How we do it
Smarthistory is a radical collaborative of more than five hundred art historians, curators, archaeologists, and artists who contribute because they beli

eve that high-quality art history should be available to everyone. Smarthistory takes you inside museums and outside to ancient temples and engages in conversations about how to interpret and understand the images you’re seeing.

05/06/2026

SEEK AND FIND WITH SMARTHISTORY

Can you identify this detail? This image comes from a Smarthistory resource published sometime in the last three months. Leave your guess in the comments!

This detail is also from one of the 17,000+ photos that are free and available to use in your teaching and learning via the Smarthistory Flickr; see the link in our bio.

02/06/2026

THIS WEEK ON SMARTHISTORY

We have a little bit of everything for you this week on Smarthistory - Cindy Sherman, Giorgione, and William Eggleston, to name a few! (And, did you notice our “See All Newly Published” button on the homepage?)

Which are you most looking forward to reading or watching? What else would you like to see on Smarthistory? Leave a comment and let us know!

Cindy Sherman, Untitled Film Still #21, 1978, gelatin silver print, 18 x 24 cm (Art Bridges Foundation) © Cindy Sherman

Giorgione, La Vecchia (The Old Woman), c. 1502–08, oil on canvas, 68 x 59 cm (Gallerie dell’Accademia, Venice).

William Eggleston, Memphis, c. 1969, dye transfer print, 29.9 x 45.7 cm (The Museum of Modern Art, New York) © William Eggleston

Jack Levine, Witches’ Sabbath, 1963, oil on canvas, 243.8 x 213.4 cm (Art Bridges Foundation) © Estate of Jack Levine.

Paul Delaroche, The Ex*****on of Lady Jane Grey, 1833, oil on canvas, 246 x 297 cm (The National Gallery, London)

26/05/2026

SMARTHISTORY: FROM VISIT TO VIDEO

At the beginning of February - 3.5 months ago! - we shared behind-the-scenes snapshots of Beth and Steven’s trip to Talladega, AL, to study, photograph, and record video material on Hale Woodruff’s two mural series. The first three videos went live in April, and we are excited to share that the concluding three videos will be uploaded this week! This second mural triad considers foundational events in the history of Talladega College: cooperation along the Underground Railroad, Opening Day at Talladega College, and the Building of Savery Library.

These photos - along with many more taken on their trip to visit the murals - are available and free to use in your teaching and learning via the Smarthistory Flickr.

Hale Woodruff, The Underground Railroad, 1942, oil on canvas, 173.2 x 313.7 cm (Toledo Art Museum) © Estate of Hale Woodruff

Hale Woodruff, Opening Day at Talladega College, 1942, oil on canvas, 178 x 620 cm (Historical Collection of Talladega College; Art Bridges/Terra Foundation) © Estate of Hale Woodruff

Hale Woodruff, The Building of Savery Library, 1942, oil on canvas, 182 x 335 cm (Art Bridges Foundation) © Estate of Hale Woodruff

22/05/2026

Ever wondered what ancient manuscripts are made of?

In this video, Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art paper conservator Rhea DeStefano and Smarthistory's Dr. Beth Harris talk about new research on the parchment, ink, fiber and wood covers of one of the few surviving early Gospels.

Watch bonus content here: https://s.si.edu/4dCFUa2

19/05/2026

THIS WEEK ON SMARTHISTORY

As per usual, our new Smarthistory resources cover a wide range of objects, places, and chronologies, ranging from Byzantine seals and relics to Louis I. Kahn’s design for the Kimbell Art Museum. Which is your favorite? What do you want to see more of on Smarthistory? Leave a comment and let us know!

Reliquary of Saint Zacharias, 6th century C.E., gold and gems, 1–3/16 x 1 x 3/16 inches (© Dumbarton Oaks, Byzantine Collection, Washington, D.C.)

Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Pluto and Proserpina (or The R**e of Proserpina), 1621–22, marble, 295 cm high (Galleria Borghese, Rome; photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Louis I. Kahn, Kimbell Art Museum Building, 1972, Fort Worth

Lead seal of Michael imperial protospatharios and strategos of Cherson, 10th century, lead, 2.6 cm diameter (Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge)

15/05/2026

ON SITE WITH SMARTHISTORY

This week, Beth and Steven have been visiting the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and collaborating with Dr. Theresa A. Cunningham, Assistant Curator of European Art and the Mellon Collections. One of Smarthistory’s most important values is embodied looking - we talk about this a lot behind the scenes! It’s important to us that you feel what it’s like to be standing with the artwork, so we go and stand there so we can share with you.

12/05/2026

THIS WEEK ON SMARTHISTORY

We are excited to share that three new videos and one new essay have been published on Smarthistory! Watch now to learn more about three twentieth century paintings - two by American artists and one by a German artist - and read an essay on a folio from a Timurid “Book of Kings” manuscript.

Which one are you looking forward to the most? What else would you like to see on Smarthistory? Leave a comment and let us know!

Eldzier Cortor, Southern Souvenir No. II (detail), c. 1948, oil on board mounted on Masonite on wood strainer, 90.2 x 163.8 cm (Art Bridges Foundation) © Eldzier Cortor Estate

Video on Arthur Dove, Sunset (detail), 1935, oil on canvas, 61 x 83.8 cm (Art Bridges Foundation) © The Estate of Arthur G. Dove

Albert Bloch, Duell (Duel) (detail), 1912, oil on canvas, 100 x 127.6 cm (Art Bridges Foundation)

Essay on The Simurgh Returns Zal to his Father (detail), from a Shāhnāma manuscript, 1444–45 / 848 AH (Timurid; Herat), ink, pigment, and gold on paper, 17.1 x 12.8 cm, patron: Muhammad Juki (The Royal Asiatic Society, London, MS RAS 239, folio 16 verso)

10/05/2026

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

To celebrate all the mothers and maternal figures in our lives, here’s a round-up of some of our favorite artworks that highlight mothers in all forms from around the world. What is your favorite work of art that honor the maternal figure?

Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, Self-Portrait with her Daughter, Julie, 1789, oil on canvas, 130 x 94 cm (Musée du Louvre, Paris)

Yolanda López, Guadalupe Triptych, 1978 (left: “Victoria F. Franco: Our Lady of Guadalupe,” oil pastel and collage on paper, 30 x 22 inches; center: “Margaret F. Stewart: Our Lady of Guadalupe,” oil pastel and paint on paper, 30 x 22 inches; right: “Portrait of the Artist as the Virgin of Guadalupe,” oil pastel and paint on paper, 30 x 22 inches)

Bronzino, Portrait of Eleonora di Toledo with her son Giovanni, 1544–45, oil on panel, 115 x 96 cm (Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence)

Abanindranath Tagore, Bharat Mata, 1905, gouache, 26.6 x 15.2 cm (Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata)

Diptych with Mary and Her Son Flanked by Archangels, Apostles and a Saint, Ethiopia, 15th century, tempera on wood, left panel: 8 7/8 x 7 13/16 x 5/8 inches (The Walters Art Museum)

Coatlicue, c. 1500, basalt, 257 cm high, Mexica (Aztec), found on the SE edge of the Plaza mayor/Zocalo in Mexico City (National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City)

Angelica Kauffman, Cornelia, Mother of the Gracchi, Pointing to Her Children as Her Treasures, c. 1785, 101.6 x 127 cm (Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond)

08/05/2026

Imagine your vacation souvenir turns out to be an ancient treasure!

That’s sort of what happened when our museum founder bought what turned out to be the 3rd oldest copy of the gospels. As Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art celebrates its anniversary, join director Chase F. Robinson and Smarthistory’s Beth Harris as they tell the story of this rare find through documents from the time.

Watch bonus content here: https://s.si.edu/4nb4Eua

05/05/2026

RUNWAY ROUND-UP

If your feed is swamped with pictures of last night’s star-studded Met Gala, this is your guide to just a few of the equally star-studded art history references. Beware: puns ahead.

If you want to dissect Beyonce’s look, you should check out Beth Harris and Steven Zucker’s essay, “The study of anatomy.”

If your knowledge of Anne Hatheway’s dress was a tragedy, you should read Renee M. Gondek’s essay, “Greek Vase-Painting, an introduction.”

If you found Amy Sherald’s dress sublime, you should watch Austen Bailly and Lauren Kilroy-Ewbank’s video, “Amy Sherald, Precious Jewels by the Sea.”

If you found a “point”-ed reference in Ben Platt’s suit, you might enjoy Beth Harris and Steven Zucker’s video, “Georges Seurat, A Sunday on La Grande Jatte - 1884.”

If Gracie Abram’s dress won your gold medal, you should watch Steven Zucker and Beth Harris’s video, “Gustav Klimt, The Kiss.”

If you thought Madonna’s look was surreal, you would enjoy Charles Cramer and Kim Grant’s essay, “Surrealism and Women.”

If you thought Rachel Zegler executed her look perfectly, you should keep an eye out for a forthcoming video on Paul Delaroche’s painting, The Ex*****on of Lady Jane Grey (1833).

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