A glimpse of Korean ceramics (III)

Moon Jars were made in Korea from the mid-17th to mid-18th century. They are large, white, porcelain storage jars and there are only twenty left in the world. Thrown in two sections and joined in the middle led to many not surviving firing in the kiln.

A glimpse of Korean ceramics (II)

The Joseon Dynasty ruled over a united Korean Peninsula for more than 500 years, from the fall of the Goryeo Dynasty in 1392 through the Japanese Occupation of 1910. The cultural innovations and achievements of Korea’s last dynasty continue to influence Korean society today.

A glimpse of Korean ceramics (I)

Earthenware pottery has been made in Korea since 8000 BCE and the art of making ceramics was perfected in the 11th century. Korean ceramics emphasise function and practicality, focusing on unpretentious forms, understated decoration and subtle colours.

Tenochtitlán: City of the Aztecs

The city-state of Tenochtitlán was situated on an island in Lake Texcoco in the Valley of Mexico. Founded in 1325, it became the capital of the Aztec Empire in the 15th century, until destroyed by Hernán Cortés in an act of ideological and cultural vandalism.

Edvard Munch and the shriek of nature

Edvard Munch (1863-1944) was a Norwegian Symbolist painter, printmaker and an important pioneer of expressionist art. His best-known composition, The Scream, is only one of many images exploring the psychology of love, fear, death, melancholia, and anxiety.

A time to mourn and a time to dance

Paris would not be the same without its cemeteries. Père-Lachaise is world famous, but south of the city there is another graveyard, whose occupants led vivacious lives and whose stories seem to symbolise the 20th century.