Taster Lecture Recording: Aphrodite and the Greek Art of Love

Thinking about a V&A Academy course? Try this free one-hour art history lecture recording that you can enjoy when it suits you best. Join V&A Academy course lecturer and expert Classicist Dr Steve Kershaw to explore how the Greek goddess of love, ‘golden Aphrodite, who stirs up sweet passion in the gods and subdues the tribes of mortal men’, has inspired and shaped our ideas of love and beauty. Examining strange myths and exquisite poetry, the lecture will trace how artistic representations of this alluring-yet-dangerous goddess metamorphosed and flourished in the Ancient Greek world.

If you enjoyed this taster lecture, discover more with Steve and a range of expert lecturers on our 10-week course Antique to Early Christian, which is available to attend online or in person. Or, delve deeper still and sign up for 30 weeks of amazing art history at the V&A South Kensington with The Story of European Art at the V&A: 500BCE to 1250. Join this Autumn, with live lectures starting on Tuesday 29 September 2026.

To access this taster lecture, simply sign up to the V&A Academy newsletter by clicking here or click 'book now'. You will receive the viewing link in your welcome email within 24 hours to enjoy access to the recording for a limited time.

Click here to find out more about the V&A Academy and discover courses and events, both online and in-person.

Got questions? Get in touch via courses@vam.ac.uk.