Happy New Year! 2014 has come to a close, leaving us with tons of memories to look back on and starting another year filled with opportunities to delve through history. We won’t be travelling back too far this Sunday though as we bring you back to two of our best discussions from the past year.
Carl Jung standing in front of Burghölzli clinic, Zurich circa 1909.
In the first hour we look back at the great mind and thinker Carl Jung. Born in Switzerland in 1875 Jung became fascinated with psychology and the emerging science of psychoanalysis as a young man. A brilliant mind Jung excelled in his studies and caught the attention of the great Sigmund Freud. Over the following years the friendship between these men would see Jung become one of the leading figures of the psychoanalytic movement.
Jung’s fascination with archetypes, religion and faith, and their roles in human psychology saw a schism open between the men, however. Jung’s concepts increasingly deviated from Freud’s teachings until the two men were at odds with one another. With both men dismissing the other as unwavering the once strong friendship split into the two largest schools of psychoanalytic thought.
In 2014 Patrick talked with a panel of experts about the life and legacy of Jung and the founding of the school of analytic psychology. Join us this Sunday at 7pm as we revisit the life of this fascinating and often controversial man. What was his childhood like? Why was religion and spiritual philosophy so important to him? And what has his legacy been on the world?
'Mona Lisa' by Leonardo da Vinci, 1503-1517
In the second hour we will move from a genius to a masterpiece as we take a look back on our discussion on the Mona Lisa. Probably the most famous painting in the world this portrait of an unknown woman has captivated people for centuries and been the centre of much speculation and intrigue. Brought to life by the phenomenal mind of Leonardo da Vinci during the early 16th century the Mona Lisa’s smile quickly captured hearts and she soon found herself in the court of King Francis I of France.
While France has been her home ever since, in 1911 the Mona Lisa disappeared from the Louvre. For two years she was lost to the art world before it was discovered that she was stolen by an Italian nationalist who wished to see her return to her birthplace. This theft caught the public’s attention and ignited interest in the portrait and has led to numerous theories on the Mona Lisa and her mysterious smile.
What is it about the Mona Lisa that makes her so lasting and famous? Is there a hidden message in the layers of paint? Did da Vinci hide something behind the Mona Lisa’s smile? Or is it only his face smirking out at us? Will we ever find out who she really is? Last year Patrick delved into the mysterious depths of this painting with a panel of experts, join us this Sunday as we revisit this discussion and the enigma that is the Mona Lisa.
