The Shock of the New

Time magazine critic and writer of the highly acclaimed study of modern art, The Shock of the New, Robert Hughes now addresses his largest subject: the history of art in America.

Twenty-five years ago the renowned art critic Robert Hughes made The Shock of the New, a landmark television series that examined the key cultural movement of the 20th Century. Now he's back to look at more recent work and to question whether modern art can still be shocking in its originality and understanding. In an age of media saturation it's perhaps even harder to tell what is good art and what is bad; but Hughes cuts through the marketing and the hype to reveal the art that is vital and will last; the art which defines the times in which we live. In a film which features interviews with David Hockney, Paula Rego, Jeff Koons and Sean Scully, Robert Hughes makes the case that painting, drawing, and the search for beauty matter more than ever before.

This documentary premiered at the 1970 Cannes Film Festival and combines black and white with color photography. Director Arthur Penn is the subject of the film. He is shown being interviewed along with his two children, 12 year old Mathew and 8 year old Molly. Scenes are shown from The Left Handed Gun, The Chase, The Miracle Worker, Bonny and Clyde, Alice's Restaurant and Little Big Man. Penn recalls how Warner Brothers insisted he change the ending for The Left Handed Gun and talks about the violence in Bonny and Clyde. His work from 1958 to 1970 received three Academy Award nominations. The director attended the world premiere of this film at Cannes and was pleased with the final effort.

Join art historian Robert Hughes for a fascinating journey into the life of Spanish painter Francisco Goya. Using the artist's works as the benchmarks in this biographical profile, Hughes follows Goya from his role as painter to the royal court through his maturity as a war reporter and into his troubled final years. Hughes reveals how the upheaval of Goya's life can be traced through his paintings that range from the fanciful to the insane.

Documentary about Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi made for the BBC series "Visions of Space".