A woman faces away from us, straps crisscrossing her back, in this photograph by Catherine Opie.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is the backdrop for a floral explosion in this visual artwork by Cai Guo-Qiang.

Francis Bacon depicts his lover lingering on the edge of death in this stark triptych of paintings.

We encounter fourteen slouched figures in this series of sculptures by Magdalena Abakanowicz.

Edie Sedgwick blinks blearily, facing a test of endurance in this work of video art by Andy Warhol. 

A whole house is cleaved cleanly in two in this site-specific artwork by Gordon Matta-Clark.

A medical diagram is appended with glitter and fluff in this thought-provoking collage by Wangechi Mutu.

A sculptural coil spirals out into the Great Salt Lake, Utah, in this work of land art by Robert Smithson.

Coloured lights are reflected into infinity in this mesmerising mirror installation by Yayoi Kusama.

A goddess stands amid a pile of laundry in this cheeky sculpture by Michelangelo Pistoletto.

This garish globe of grinning, plastic daisies by Takashi Murakami once stood in the Palace of Versailles.

Richard Serra's curved steel sculpture towered over New York commuters in the eighties, provoking awe and ire.

We survey a room crammed full of stock brokers in this frenetic photograph by Andreas Gursky.

We are led through a series of puzzling transformations in this confounding woodcut by M.C. Escher.

A fragmented body is scattered across sixteen screens in this disquieting video installation by Gary Hill.

A quartet of blue hues sweeps over the viewer in this sunny, deceptively simple painting by Etel Adnan.

Cindy Sherman sits, slumped against hand, clutching a bathrobe to her body in this frank photograph.

Four faces guffaw at a private punchline in this quartet of self-portrait paintings by Geng Jianyi.

Antony Gormley's arresting, celestial sculpture towers over the A1, carrying the mythology of its homeland.

A fragile historical artefact tumbles to the floor in this provocative photographic triptych by Ai Weiwei.

We intrude on a woman reclining in dingy bathwater in this intimate, dimly lit photograph by Nan Goldin.

Spider-Man and Hello Kitty pose against a grey Guangzhou backdrop in this multimedia series by Cao Fei.

A grand, triangular table is set with 39 handcrafted place settings in this intricate installation by Judy Chicago.

Janine Antoni gnashes and nibbles a huge cube of chocolate in this sweet-toothed work of performance art.

A woman faces away from us, straps crisscrossing her back, in this photograph by Catherine Opie.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is the backdrop for a floral explosion in this visual artwork by Cai Guo-Qiang.

Francis Bacon depicts his lover lingering on the edge of death in this stark triptych of paintings.

We encounter fourteen slouched figures in this series of sculptures by Magdalena Abakanowicz.

Edie Sedgwick blinks blearily, facing a test of endurance in this work of video art by Andy Warhol. 

A whole house is cleaved cleanly in two in this site-specific artwork by Gordon Matta-Clark.

A medical diagram is appended with glitter and fluff in this thought-provoking collage by Wangechi Mutu.

A sculptural coil spirals out into the Great Salt Lake, Utah, in this work of land art by Robert Smithson.

Coloured lights are reflected into infinity in this mesmerising mirror installation by Yayoi Kusama.

A goddess stands amid a pile of laundry in this cheeky sculpture by Michelangelo Pistoletto.

This garish globe of grinning, plastic daisies by Takashi Murakami once stood in the Palace of Versailles.

Richard Serra's curved steel sculpture towered over New York commuters in the eighties, provoking awe and ire.

We survey a room crammed full of stock brokers in this frenetic photograph by Andreas Gursky.

We are led through a series of puzzling transformations in this confounding woodcut by M.C. Escher.

A fragmented body is scattered across sixteen screens in this disquieting video installation by Gary Hill.

A quartet of blue hues sweeps over the viewer in this sunny, deceptively simple painting by Etel Adnan.

Cindy Sherman sits, slumped against hand, clutching a bathrobe to her body in this frank photograph.

Four faces guffaw at a private punchline in this quartet of self-portrait paintings by Geng Jianyi.

Antony Gormley's arresting, celestial sculpture towers over the A1, carrying the mythology of its homeland.

A fragile historical artefact tumbles to the floor in this provocative photographic triptych by Ai Weiwei.

We intrude on a woman reclining in dingy bathwater in this intimate, dimly lit photograph by Nan Goldin.

Spider-Man and Hello Kitty pose against a grey Guangzhou backdrop in this multimedia series by Cao Fei.

A grand, triangular table is set with 39 handcrafted place settings in this intricate installation by Judy Chicago.

Janine Antoni gnashes and nibbles a huge cube of chocolate in this sweet-toothed work of performance art.