Looking for Paradise
Andrew Graham-Dixon begins his history of American art with portraits of Puritan settlers and the dark truth behind Benjamin West's most famous painting.
In the first episode of a series exploring the history of American art, Andrew Graham-Dixon embarks on an epic journey from east to west, following in the footsteps of the pioneers who built the foundations of modern America.
During his journey, he travels to Massachusetts to see the earliest portraits in America depicting the Puritan settlers and visits Pennsylvania to uncover the dark truth behind Benjamin West's most famous painting, the spectacular Treaty of Penn with the Indians. In Philadelphia, he turns the pages of one of the world's most expensive books - John James Audubon's exquisite Birds of America, and explores the wilderness that inspired America's greatest landscape painter, Thomas Cole.
He also uncovers the paradox at the heart of America: that progress and innovation have come at a tragic price, the destruction of the unique cultural heritage of Native Americans by European settlers.
Andrew's journey takes us to the end of the 19th century and the announcement that the era of westward expansion was officially over.
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Andrew at the Capitol
Duration: 03:08
Credits
Role | Contributor |
---|---|
Presenter | Andrew Graham-Dixon |
Producer | Paul Tilzey |
Director | Paul Tilzey |
Director | Paul Tilzey |
Series Producer | Silvia Sacco |
Executive Producer | Basil Comely |
Broadcasts
- Mon 14 Nov 2011 21:00Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Four & Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ HD
- Tue 15 Nov 2011 03:00
- Fri 18 Nov 2011 22:55Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ HD
- Sat 19 Nov 2011 20:00
- Sun 20 Nov 2011 02:30
- Tue 26 Feb 2013 00:55
- Mon 14 Jan 2019 21:00
- Tue 15 Jan 2019 03:00
- Wed 28 Aug 2019 00:25
- Tue 22 Jun 2021 23:55
- Mon 13 Sep 2021 23:30
- Mon 19 Feb 2024 20:00
- Tue 20 Feb 2024 02:30
Featured in...
Art on Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Four
The stories behind iconic works of art.