Editor Reviews:

Amazon.com:
This BBC series consists of five one-hour cassettes featuring 10 episodes of a masterful odyssey through early art, the Renaissance, and baroque art to romanticism, the age of revolution, and modernism. Lumpy, likable Sister Wendy Beckett guides us on a spirited tour of art through the ages that the entire family can savor and repeatedly enjoy. This woman is a scream--acerbic, astute, and surprisingly earthy. Oh yes, and very, very knowledgeable. Within each 30-minute program are several segments covering much canvas, but always in easily digestible amounts. This is perfect for the artistically deprived, the artfully minded, or anyone with a brain and a sense of humor. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Rating : - Buckle Your Seat Belts!
...because this is one quick story! Is it wrong to think that five hours isn't enough time for so lengthy a subject? In this case, it didn't seem like enough, but I understand that the producers had to stop somewhere.

Sister Wendy does a masterful job of showing you things in art you might not see otherwise. Her passion is alive and real, and she doesn't hesitate to show the viewer exactly what she sees. And the topics aren't muted because she's a nun - whether it is love or hate or sex or suicide - doesn't matter to Sister Wendy. She tackles them all. Not only does she explain various masterpieces of art, she also tells you about the artists that made them, and why.

Sadly, though, there is so much to cover and so little time. Because of this Sister Wendy is only able to spend a few minutes on any given artist - whether it is da Vinci or Monet, they all get the same treatment. And although it is understandable, for there is a lot of ground to cover, it left me wanting more - like I hadn't seen it all (and indeed I hadn't).

To adequately cover this material Sister Wendy would probably have to produce a 10 or 15 hour documentary. But again, there's only so much you can cover. In view of that, Sister Wendy has done as good a job as any!

Four stars.