An epic work of art history that will transform our understanding of the world by unlocking the human stories behind millennia of art. Taking readers from ancient Babylon to contemporary Pyongyang, the eminent curator Caroline Campbell explains art's power to illuminate our lives--and inspires us to benefit from its transformative and regenerative power.

Unlike the majority of contemporary art history, this book is about much more than the cult of artists' personalities. Instead, each chapter is structured around a city at a particularly vibrant moment in its history, describing what propelled its creativity and innovation.

The emotions and societies she evokes are highly recognizable, revealing how great art resonates powerfully by transcending the boundaries of time.