The Arts at KET

Uncover the Exciting Story of Leonardo da Vinci's Life and Work

da Vinci's Life and Work

Leonardo da Vinci is considered by many to be one of the greatest artists who ever lived. Yet his reputation rests on only a handful of works--including the world's most famous painting, the Mona Lisa.

As the National Gallery in London prepares to open its doors on a remarkable exhibition of Leonardo's work, British journalist Fiona Bruce travels to Florence, Milan, Paris, and Warsaw to uncover the story of this enigmatic genius--and to New York, where she is given an exclusive preview of a sensational discovery: a new Leonardo.

Locked away in a secret location in New York is a painting believed by experts to be a Leonardo, thought to have disappeared centuries ago. Bruce meets the people behind this sensational discovery to learn how it came about, and is given an exclusive preview of the picture, never filmed before.

She travels to the small town of Vinci in Tuscany where Leonardo was born. She follows in his footsteps to Florence, the jewel of Renaissance Italy, where Leonardo was apprenticed to work with the master painter Verrocchio. In the Uffizi Gallery, she sees the first glimpses of the hand of Leonardo the painter. In Florence, Leonardo was feted as an exceptional talent. But, it was here that Leonardo was accused of the crime of homosexuality--punishable by death.

In Paris, Bruce is given a private view of the Mona Lisa and learns the secret of how Leonardo achieved the extraordinary effect that the picture has had on generations of art lovers: by meticulously applying layer upon layer of paint thinly mixed with oil to produce a smoky, mysterious finish.

Monday, May 20 at 9/8 pm CT and Thursday, May 23 at 10/9 pm CT on KET2

See a complete listing of this week's arts programs.

New KET Resource Explores the Civil War

A State Divided: Exploring the Civil War Through Images includes 75 fascinating images related to the Civil War in Kentucky, ranging from medals and photographs to portraits and weapons.

A zooming feature of the Web version allows a detailed view of each image, and images are accompanied by extensive background information for Civil War buffs and extras for teachers and students. There's also a mobile version.

This resource was produced as a partnership of the Kentucky Historical Society and KET. The goal is to provide images of artworks, artifacts, photographs, and source documents that can be used to teach social studies and arts and humanities.

Arts Anniversary

It's wedding season! Royal weddings, up-dos, and Bridesmaids the movie are giving us wedding fever this spring. So, it's the perfect time to celebrate the marriage of a classic Hollywood couple: Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, who wed on May 21, 1945.

The couple met while filming To Have and Have Not in 1944. She was 19; he was 45. Almost immediately afterwards, they began work on their best-known film together, The Big Sleep.

Bogart nicknamed Bacall "Baby." They were married at Malabar Farm in Lucas, Ohio.

Though Bacall was Bogart's fourth wife, their marriage was happy and lasted until his death in 1957. They had two children together, a boy and a girl. Their Hollywood friends included Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, and Frank Sinatra.

Find out what happened in the arts today and every day in the Arts Toolkit's This Day in the Arts calendar.

State of the Art

The Best of the Bluegrass in Lexington, starting June 3, is a weeklong celebration of bluegrass music and culture. Featuring performances, workshops, and community events, it all culminates in the 40th annual
Festival of the Bluegrass.

The festival is held every year during the 2nd Weekend of June at the Kentucky Horse Park Campground. The lineup this year includes Del McCoury, J.D. Crowe, Bobby Osborne, and many more.

KET will be broadcasting performances from the festival live on air and online as part of the Jubilee series. Details to come!