The Great Artist is a type of Great Person Great Person in Civilization VI dedicated to the creation of Great Works of Art. Each Great Artist may be activated up to three times on a tile containing an empty slot which accepts Great Works of Art (such as a Theater Square district with an Art Museum, a Palace, or the Hermitage), creating up to three Great Works of Art.
Earning Great Artists
Great Artists may be claimed by any player who has earned enough Great Artist points. Theater Squares generate +1 Great Artist point per turn, and Art Museums and Archaeological Museums provide an additional +2 Great Artist points. Broadcast Centers generate a further +1 Great Artist point (for a total of 4 points in that district). More Great Artist points may be earned by completing the Theater Square Performances project in a city with a Theater Square. Players who do not have enough points may patronize an Artist by paying the difference using Faith or Gold.
The Hermitage provides +3 Great Artist points every turn, and can house a total of 4 Great Works of Art of any type.
Players can also increase their Great Artist point yields by using the Frescoes policy card, which generates +2 Great Artist points per turn.
The Stockholm Suzerain bonus increases the number of Great Artist points generated from each Theater Square district by +1. (Note that in Rise and Fall, this bonus is only active if the Theater Square has a completed Amphitheater building.)
Great Artists
Name | Era | Great Works of Art |
---|---|---|
Andrei Rublev | Renaissance | Annunciation ( Religious), Saviour in Glory ( Religious), Ascension ( Religious) |
Michelangelo | Renaissance | Sistine Chapel Ceiling ( Religious Art), Pieta ( Sculpture), David ( Sculpture) |
Donatello | Renaissance | Saint Mark ( Sculpture), Gattamelata ( Sculpture), Judith Slaying Holofernes ( Sculpture) |
Hieronymus Bosch | Renaissance | The Garden of Earthly Delights ( Religious), The Last Judgement ( Religious), The Haywain Triptych ( Religious) |
Rembrandt van Rijn | Industrial | Andries de Graeff ( Portrait), Agatha Bas ( Portrait), Abraham and Isaac ( Religious). |
El Greco | Industrial | Adoration of the Magi ( Religious), The Assumption of the Virgin ( Religious), View of Toledo ( Landscape) |
Qiu Ying | Industrial | Spring Morning in the Han Palace ( Landscape), Fisherman in Reclusion Among the Lotus Stream ( Landscape), Red Cliff ( Landscape) |
Titian | Industrial | Assunta ( Religious), Salome with the Head of John the Baptist ( Religious), Equestrian Portrait of Charles V ( Portrait) |
Jang Seung-eop | Modern | "Saminmunnyeondo" ( Landscape), "Rooster" ( Landscape), "Ssangma Immuldo"( Landscape) |
Sofonisba Anguissola | Modern | Three Sisters Playing Chess ( Portrait), Phillip II of Spain ( Portrait), A Monk ( Portrait) |
Angelica Kauffman | Modern | Ana Maria Jenkins and Thomas Jefferson ( Portrait), Portrait of Johann Joachim Winckelmann ( Portrait), Sarah Harrop as a Muse ( Portrait) |
Katsushika Hokusai | Modern | "The Great Wave Off Kanagawa" ( Landscape), "Lake Suwa in Shinano" ( Landscape), "Fuji Mountains in Clear Weather" ( Landscape). |
Edmonia Lewis | Atomic | The Death of Cleopatra ( Sculpture), Marriage of Hiawatha ( Sculpture), Pompeiian Girl ( Sculpture) |
Claude Monet | Atomic | Water Lillies ( Landscape), Sunrise Impression ( Landscape), Haystack at Giverny ( Landscape) |
Marie-Anne Collot | Atomic | Portrait of Pierre Etienne Falconet ( Sculpture), Portrait of Catherine II ( Sculpture), Portrait of Marie Cathcart ( Sculpture) |
Vincent van Gogh | Atomic | Starry Night ( Landscape), Café Terrace at Night ( Landscape), The Night Cafe ( Landscape) |
Amrita Sher-Gil | Information | Three Girls ( Portrait), Bride's Toliet ( Portrait), Self Portrait ( Portrait) |
Boris Orlovsky | Information | Mikhail Kutuzov ( Sculpture), Alexander Victory Column ( Sculpture), Bust of Tsar Alexander ( Sculpture) |
Gustav Klimt | Information | The Kiss ( Portrait), Avenue of Schloss Kammer Park ( Landscape), Sunflower ( Landscape) |
Mary Cassatt | Information | Lydia Leaning on Her Arms ( Portrait), The Child's Bath ( Portrait), The Cup of Tea ( Portrait) |
Strategy
Great Artists are very helpful when pursuing a Cultural Victory, but their Great Works have to be micromanaged carefully for optimal effect. Only Art Museums and the Hermitage have slots specifically for Great Works of Art, and the former will yield their maximum Culture and Tourism bonuses only if they are properly themed (i.e. have all three slots filled with Sculpture, Portrait, Landscape or Religious art from different Artists), so you'll need at least three Great Artists to earn the theming bonus from each Art Museum. If you plan to rely on them heavily, be sure to include the Frescoes Policy Card in your government, exchange Great Works of Art with other civilizations that are focusing on cultural development, and save up Faith and/or Gold to patronize the Artists you need the most.
Civilopedia entry
Artists are the visionaries of civilization. They daub paint on canvas or chip away at stone, and leave it to others to find vision and meaning therein. They interpret the world and give beauty, brilliance, form, and color to the mundane; these are those who paint the pictures, carve the statues, take the photos, and make the films that define and reinforce our humanity. Sometimes they are appreciated in their lifetime; usually, not. Sometimes they make a living with their art; usually, not. However, the work of these artists can, occasionally, surpass its time and place, enlightening and elevating a people, making a civilization far greater than its material wealth and worldly power.