Titlesort icon Creator Date Era City Country Emotional Sum (Sense of Life or emotional World View) Theme
Othello: the Moor of Venice Playwright: William Shakespeare 1603 1600s Stratford-on-Avon United Kingdom

Malevolence and horrible tragedy is unrelieved.  Evil is potent.

A great man can be gullible and controlled by an evil character.  Or, an evil character can have potency in the world, because of the weakness of a good man.

Owl and the Sparrow Director: Stephane Gauger 2007 1991-2010 Saigon Vietnam

A child shows sweetness and strength and determination.

Searching for family, for soulmates.

Pieta Sculptor: Michelangelo Buonarotti 1500 1500s

Resignation in the face of tragedy.

Recognition and acceptance of a great personal loss.

Psyche Author: Phyllis Brett Young 1959 Canada

Optimistic, Hopeful, even under terrible circumstances.

We are beings of self-made soul

Rape of Polyxena, The Sculptor: Pio Fedi 1866 1800s

Strength and complex beauty are central. Vitality, passion and action are hallmarks of this work.

Life is complex strife, entwined with strong god-like characters.

Rashomon Director: Akira Kurosawa 1950 1931-1950 Japan

The world is terrible and full of disasters and mankind is awful and pathetic.

Objectivity is a myth -- everyone sees a different reality, a different "story".

Real Adventure, The Author: Henry Kitchell Webster 1915 United States

Life is wonderful as long as you realize that life has to be earned the hard way.

Creating your self is the only way to live.

Real Chiesa di San Lorenzo (Royal Church of St. Lawrence) Architect: Guarino Guarini 1680 1600s Torino (Turin) Italy

The world is perfected. The joy of seeing complexity that is simplicity, i.e., that the rich complex vision arises from simple elements which because of their arrangement provide layers of visual thrills.

Complex, soaring geometric order.

Repose Painter: John White Alexander 1895 1900s New York United States

Life is extravagant and lush and sensual.

Feminine Sensuality is a main theme, though one can argue that a related (equal theme or sub-theme) is: The Lushness of the Material World. The dramatic draped womanly figure pressing against a divan, whose figure is clearly oulined, shares the visual dominance of the painting along with the magnificent sweeps of her dress and the giant pillows, the massive backrest, and even the strong elements of the floor material and the golden back wall. All together a remarkable composition.

Riace Bronze A Myron?: c.460 BCE 500 BCE - 1 CE Greece

Man is strong and indomitable

Intelligence, Pride, Strength = Man

Rob Roy Director: Michael Caton-Jones 1995 1991-2010 United Kingdom

Life is a struggle. The life you make for yourself can be difficult, but living it with strength and morality is the way to live. Happiness is possible in romance.

Heroism in everyday life leads to heroism writ large. A man works hard to lead his life and those of his extended clan in an honorable, productive, honest way. This is the everyday heroism. But dishonorable, evil men seek to steal from him and ruin him. This leads to a life of larger-than-life heroism to vanquish his mortal, and stronger enemies.

Robie House Architect: Frank Lloyd Wright 1910 1900 - 1950 Chicago, Illinois United States

The world is open and has sweeping, unending possibilities.

The essence of a house as shelter, and providing a sense of strength and privacy. That is, a structure that exudes strength through its massive cantilever and massive brick and stone forms, along with its big overhangs sheltering the windows to create a sense of privacy and enclosure, in its urban situation.

Romeo + Juliet Director: Baz Luhrmann 1996 1991-2010 United States

Tragedy is central to life.

Romantic Love is doomed and we don't control our own lives.

Ruggles of Red Gap Director: Leo McCarey 1935 1931-1950 United States

Happiness and fulfillment is in yourself.

Personal declaration of independence from servitude

Sainte-Chapelle Architect: Anonymous 1248 Paris, Ile de la Cite France

The world is brilliant, light, colorful, orderly.

The world is brilliant, light, colorful, orderly.

Shade, The Rodin, Auguste: 1880-1904 1900s Paris France

Life is a gruesome trial. There is no hope.

The world destroys man. (Some unknown evil force is destroying this young strong man.) Given that the sculpture is titled as a "Shade" and is related to the Group sculpture "Gates of Hell", one can presume the evil is some unnamed condition that can overpower life and cause destruction of the good.

Sports March Singing Group: Soviet Army Chorus and Band unknown mid-20th century 1900s Russia

Happiness triumphs.

The power of joy to motivate action.

The New Colossus Author: Emma Lazarus 1883 1800s New York, NY United States

Benevolent celebration of liberty as a beacon to a troubled world.

A marvelous land of liberty offers welcome to the oppressed of the world.

The Samovar Painter: Emil Carlsen 1920c. 1900s

The world is full of textural richness worth looking at.

The richness of light and the objects it caresses.  This is a paean to the richness of visual experience, but with the simplest of materials -- just a light source and two kinds of simple unadorned objects.

Three Graces Sculptor: Antonio Canova 1814 1800s Italy

The female human form is beautiful, graceful, ideal.

Quiet repose and sisterly love. The piece exudes a quiet elegance and peacefulness amidst the complex three-dimensional composition. The inclusion of "sisterly love" is less certain, except that taking into account the mythological background of the piece. It can be argued that one should not take that into account, so perhaps that should not formally be included in the theme.

Trees Alexander, John: 1899 1900s Olathe United States

A sense of the world as dynamic and strong.

Nature is wild and dynamic.

Trustee from the Toolroom Author: Nevil Shute 1960 United Kingdom

A feeling of gentleness, kindness and generosity towards good people in the world.

The importance of pursuing one's personal values.

Two Family House Director: Raymond De Felitta 2000 1991-2010 New York United States

Feelings of benevolence and optimism about life. Happiness comes from making choices for your own good.

Going after what you want in life; Don't be stopped by conventional standards of the people around you. It takes courage to be selfish.

Tzena Tzena Tzena Miron - Parish: 1941 1900s Israel

Joyous celebration

Joyous celebration

Vitus Director: Fredi Murer 2006

If you have the will, you can find the way to live the way you want.

Living your life your own way is the only right way.