The secrets of Leonardo da Vinci’s art and the distinctive features of his manner of painting; the Hermitage’s Madonna Litta and other disputed works by the master; the diversity of Leonardo’s talent that enabled him to write, “I can also paint”

Raphael’s discoveries as the standard in painting; the phenomenon of the artist’s personality; the facts of his life that influenced his work

The purpose of Michelangelo’s art; The Last Judgement and the Sistine Chapel ceiling; the reason Michelangelo didn’t consider himself a painter

The origins of baroque style; the significance of the sculptor’s discoveries today; the features of Bernini’s style that make him a timeless artist

Giotto’s innovations; the psychologism of da Vinci’s works; the knowledge of the balance between image and word as the key to understanding the subject of the painting

The likeness of the sculptures to the ancient depictions of Venus, Apollo and Hercules; the distinctive features of the surfaces of Antonio Canova’s sculptures as the key to their understanding; the composition of the works of art