
Frieze Masters Podcast
The Frieze Masters Podcast is back for 2024, bringing you the annual Frieze Masters Talks programme recorded during this year’s fair. The series of seven discussions was curated by Sheena Wagstaff and Shanay Jhaveri, with the title ‘The Creative Mind’, and features 21 intergenerational and international speakers exploring how the art of the past can help make sense of the present.
The series includes topics ‘The State We’re In’, ‘The Faces of Community’ and ‘The Power of Painting’, with speakers ranging from artists – Nairy Baghramian, Jeremy Deller, Nathalie Du Pasquier, Shirazeh Houshiary, Mark Leckey, Glenn Ligon, Ming Smith – to curators such as Gabriele Finaldi, Glenn Lowry and Victoria Siddall, plus writers, thinkers, architects and politicians.
The Frieze Masters Talks programme and the Frieze Masters Podcast are brought to you by Frieze in collaboration with dunhill.
About Frieze
Frieze is the world’s leading platform for modern and contemporary art, dedicated to artists, galleries, collectors and art lovers alike. Frieze comprises three magazines – frieze, Frieze Masters Magazine and Frieze Week; five international art fairs – Frieze London, Frieze Masters, Frieze New York, Frieze Los Angeles and Frieze Seoul; and No.9 Cork Street, a permanent gallery space in the heart of London.
www.frieze.com
instagram.com/friezeofficial
Latest episodes

Jan 5, 2024 • 38min
Episode Five: On Power | Thomas J Price & Dr Gus Casely-Hayford
In On Power, London-based multidisciplinary artist Thomas J Price is in conversation with Dr Gus Casely-Hayford, the inaugural Director of V&A East. Together, they reflect on how monuments created for the public realm are not just aesthetic objects but artefacts often bound up in values, ideologies and power systems. Price, in his words, wants to convey ‘the sense of another person’ and has spent the past two decades creating large-scale figurative sculptures of everyday, unidentified Black individuals, often located in public spaces: such as the commission honouring the Windrush Generation in London’s Hackney. 'Visibility is one thing, but understanding is another. I think that desire to be understood is so primal and so urgent and so necessary within all of us and I think for a long time, people of colour had to do without that reality.' – Thomas J Price Thomas J Price is a British artist celebrated for his large-scale figurative sculptures. ‘Thomas J Price at the V&A’ presents the artist’s work in dialogue with the V&A’s historic collections, until May 2024. Dr Gus Casely-Hayford is the inaugural Director of V&A East, appointed in March 2020, as well as a curator and cultural historian who writes, lectures and broadcasts widely on culture. Find images of the artwork discussed here. About Frieze Masters Podcast Series two of the Frieze Masters Podcast is now available, bringing you our annual programme of live talks – the Frieze Masters Talks programme – curated by the Director of the National Portrait Gallery, Dr Nicholas Cullinan. These eight conversations between leading artists, writers, museum directors and curators all reflect the ethos of the Frieze Masters fair: looking at the past with a contemporary gaze. The Frieze Masters Talks programme and the Frieze Masters Podcast are brought to you by Frieze in collaboration with dunhill, the foremost British luxury menswear house. This podcast is a Reduced Listening production. The producer was Silvia Malnati and sound engineer was Andy Fell. About Frieze Frieze is the world’s leading platform for modern and contemporary art, dedicated to artists, galleries, collectors and art lovers alike. Frieze comprises three magazines – 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘻𝘦, Frieze Masters Magazine and Frieze Week; five international art fairs – Frieze London, Frieze Masters, Frieze New York, Frieze Los Angeles and Frieze Seoul; and No.9 Cork Street, a permanent gallery space in the heart of London. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial

Dec 15, 2023 • 28min
Episode Four: On Studios | Arlene Shechet & Sheena Wagstaff
In 2023, Frieze Masters fair sought to break the artist’s studio open to a new audience with a new section, Studio, curated by Sheena Wagstaff – the former Chairman of the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Met and now Met’s Chair Emerita. In On Studios, Wagstaff talks with one of the Studio artists, Arlene Shechet, exploring how central the place and space of making is to her work, as well as its significance in the realm of creativity. 'It’s not a genius move, it’s just hard work. It just means that you know that you want something more, you know that you want something different. You follow the work always in terms of form, you follow the work in terms of idea, and you definitely follow the work in terms of solving any technical problems.' – Arlene Shechet Arlene Shechet is a sculptor working in New York City and the Hudson Valley. In 2023, Shechet was elected as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 2024, the Storm King Art Center will stage a major exhibition of Shechet’s work. Sheena Wagstaff was Chair of Modern and Contemporary Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York from 2012-22, and is now vested as Met’s Chair Emerita. Wagstaff was appointed Creative Advisor for Frieze Masters in November 2023. Find images of the artwork discussed here. About Frieze Masters Podcast Series two of the Frieze Masters Podcast is now available, bringing you our annual programme of live talks – the Frieze Masters Talks programme – curated by the Director of the National Portrait Gallery, Dr Nicholas Cullinan. These eight conversations between leading artists, writers, museum directors and curators all reflect the ethos of the Frieze Masters fair: looking at the past with a contemporary gaze. The Frieze Masters Talks programme and the Frieze Masters Podcast are brought to you by Frieze in collaboration with dunhill, the foremost British luxury menswear house. This podcast is a Reduced Listening production. The producer was Silvia Malnati and sound engineer was Andy Fell. About Frieze Frieze is the world’s leading platform for modern and contemporary art, dedicated to artists, galleries, collectors and art lovers alike. Frieze comprises three magazines – 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘻𝘦, Frieze Masters Magazine and Frieze Week; five international art fairs – Frieze London, Frieze Masters, Frieze New York, Frieze Los Angeles and Frieze Seoul; and No.9 Cork Street, a permanent gallery space in the heart of London. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial

Dec 8, 2023 • 48min
Episode Three: On Photography | Tim Walker & Jerry Stafford
On Photography asks what it means today for an artist to work with a living, breathing icon, like the actress Tilda Swinton. Tim Walker, the noted artist and photographer, is joined by his long-time collaborator, stylist Jerry Stafford, to talk about their work together with Tilda Swinton. Dr Nicholas Cullinan, Director of the National Portrait Gallery, London, moderates the conversation. 'When I’m scared of something or someone, that scare turns into being photogenic. […] The situation becomes very heightened and I become very alert and I then I think I make better work.' – Tim Walker Tim Walker is a photographer for Vogue’s British, Italian and American editions, as well as W Magazine and LOVE Magazine. Jerry Stafford is a writer and curator. He is creative director at Paris-based film production company Premiere Heure and personal stylist to performers Tilda Swinton and Gwendoline Christie. Dr Nicholas Cullinan is Director of the National Portrait Gallery, London. Find images of the artwork discussed here. This episode is presented in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery. About Frieze Masters Podcast Series two of the Frieze Masters Podcast is now available, bringing you our annual programme of live talks – the Frieze Masters Talks programme – curated by the Director of the National Portrait Gallery, Dr Nicholas Cullinan. These eight conversations between leading artists, writers, museum directors and curators all reflect the ethos of the Frieze Masters fair: looking at the past with a contemporary gaze. The Frieze Masters Talks programme and the Frieze Masters Podcast are brought to you by Frieze in collaboration with dunhill, the foremost British luxury menswear house. This podcast is a Reduced Listening production. The producer was Silvia Malnati and sound engineer was Andy Fell. About Frieze Frieze is the world’s leading platform for modern and contemporary art, dedicated to artists, galleries, collectors and art lovers alike. Frieze comprises three magazines – 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘻𝘦, Frieze Masters Magazine and Frieze Week; five international art fairs – Frieze London, Frieze Masters, Frieze New York, Frieze Los Angeles and Frieze Seoul; and No.9 Cork Street, a permanent gallery space in the heart of London. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial

Dec 7, 2023 • 34min
Episode Two: On Display | Shirin Neshat, Jamie Fobert, Dr Nicholas Cullinan
Artist Shirin Neshat, architect Jamie Fobert, and National Portrait Gallery director Dr. Nicholas Cullinan discuss the history and contemporary meaning of the gallery. They reflect on Neshat's portrait of Malala Yousafzai and the paradoxical qualities captured. The conversation also explores the transformation project for the building, creating seamless harmony between art and architecture, and the ideal presentation of artwork in a gallery space. Efforts to humanize the museum space and enhance visitor experience are also discussed.

Nov 30, 2023 • 34min
Episode One: On Rebellion | Maggi Hambling & Sarah Lucas
In 2005, British artists Maggi Hambling and Sarah Lucas met at the historic Colony Room Club in London’s Soho. There, they discovered that they shared the same irreverent and unapologetic attitude – and even the same birthday. In On Rebellion, chaired by Louisa Buck, these two British artists discuss their influences, their reactions to rules and expectations, facing up to mortality and being each other’s muse. 'I think great art creates somewhere where life and death cohabit, where life and death come together' – Maggi Hambling Maggi Hambling is a British painter and sculptor. Hambling’s latest series of paintings, Maelstrom, is on show at Frankie Rossi Art Projects, London, 5 October – 24 November 2023. Sarah Lucas is a British artist whose practice spans sculpture, photography and installation. Tate Britain, London, hosts the major exhibition Sarah Lucas: Happy Gas, 28 September 2023 – 14 January 2024. Louisa Buck is a writer and broadcaster on contemporary art. Find images of the artwork discussed here. About Frieze Masters Podcast Series two of the Frieze Masters Podcast is now available, bringing you our annual programme of live talks – the Frieze Masters Talks programme – curated by the Director of the National Portrait Gallery, Dr Nicholas Cullinan. These eight conversations between leading artists, writers, museum directors and curators all reflect the ethos of the Frieze Masters fair: looking at the past with a contemporary gaze. The Frieze Masters Talks programme and the Frieze Masters Podcast are brought to you by Frieze in collaboration with dunhill, the foremost British luxury menswear house. About Frieze Frieze is the world’s leading platform for modern and contemporary art, dedicated to artists, galleries, collectors and art lovers alike. Frieze comprises three magazines – 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘻𝘦, Frieze Masters Magazine and Frieze Week; five international art fairs – Frieze London, Frieze Masters, Frieze New York, Frieze Los Angeles and Frieze Seoul; and No.9 Cork Street, a permanent gallery space in the heart of London. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial

Jan 24, 2023 • 52min
Anthea Hamilton & Nicholas Cullinan
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Anthea Hamilton & Nicholas Cullinan in partnership with Studio Voltaire @studiovoltairelondon. Their conversation explores the trajectory of Hamilton’s work, the geopolitical basis of her identity as a ‘Londoner’ and how elements from the ‘fourth dimension’ shape her work. “We're actually functioning in a four-dimensional space, and I tried to think about what might be in the fourth dimension, if it's not just depth. And for me, those fourth dimensional things are emotions, power, wealth, and those are the kinds of things I think, which are shaping the practice as it kind of goes forward." – Anthea Hamilton Anthea Hamilton @hamiltonanthea was born in London in 1978, where she lives and works. Her approach has often focused on extended study into archives, scientific research and popular culture combining these with resonant images and objects in unusual and surreal ways. Nicholas Cullinan @nicholascullinan is an art historian, curator and Director of the National Portrait Gallery in London. About the Frieze Masters Podcast Exploring themes of identity, originality, geopolitics and Blackness through a historical lens, the new Frieze Masters Podcast is now available. Bringing together some of today’s most celebrated artists, art historians and curators, the podcast launches with the Talks programme from the 2022 edition of Frieze Masters – one of the world’s leading art fairs – and offers compelling insight into the influence of historical art on contemporary perspectives and creativity. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial

Jan 16, 2023 • 58min
Love Lucian: The letters and early life of Lucian Freud
Frieze Masters presents Love Lucian: The Letters and Early Life of Lucian Freud in partnership with the Freud Museum (@freudmuseum) . This episode features Hannah Rothschild in conversation with Martin Gayford and David Dawson, speaking on their new publication and the first exhibition of Lucian Freud’s works at the Freud Museum London. Exploring the overlapping themes present in both Love Lucian and the exhibition, the discussion draws out some interesting and lesser-known facets of Lucian’s early life. Having uncovered illustrated letters to friends, love letters, and even telegrams, Dawson and Gayford’s latest research will offer an intimate glimpse of the artist’s personality and creative practice in the early part of his career. "[We] wanted to show the humour in him, the quick-wittedness in him, and how that sort of shapes his painting...just so that you get a real feel of what Lucian was like, as a young boy, young man, and what comes after." – David Dawson David Dawson is Director of the Lucian Freud Archive and was Freud’s longstanding assistant, Martin Gayford is an author and the exhibition’s curator, and Hannah Rothschild CBE is a British writer, documentary filmmaker, businesswoman and philanthropist. About the Frieze Masters Podcast Exploring themes of identity, originality, geopolitics and Blackness through a historical lens, the new Frieze Masters Podcast is now available. Bringing together some of today’s most celebrated artists, art historians and curators, the podcast launches with the Talks programme from the 2022 edition of Frieze Masters – one of the world’s leading art fairs – and offers compelling insight into the influence of historical art on contemporary perspectives and creativity. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial

Jan 9, 2023 • 1h 4min
Kamala Ibrahim Ishag & Hans Ulrich Obrist
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Kamala Ibrahim Ishag and Hans Ulrich Obrist in partnership with the Serpentine (@serpentineuk). To celebrate the opening of her solo exhibition at Serpentine, Ishag returns to the RCA where she studied in the 1960s. She discusses her background, her relationship with nature and the influence of the Sudanese Zār cult on her work. "If people are really genuine with their plants and they respect their plants, they should talk to them as human, as a source of creation from God. Humans and plants, we are all the same." – Kamala Ibrahim Ishag Kamala Ibrahim Ishag was amongst the first women artists to graduate from the College of Fine and Applied Art in Khartoum in 1963, which she followed with studies in Mural Painting at the RCA in London between 1964 and 1966 and Lithography, Typography and Illustration from 1968-9. Her work bridges the earthly and spiritual through an understanding of our connections with the natural world. Hans Ulrich Obrist (@hansulrichobrist) is Artistic Director at Serpentine Find images of artwork discussed here. About the Frieze Masters Podcast Exploring themes of identity, originality, geopolitics and Blackness through a historical lens, the new Frieze Masters Podcast is now available. Bringing together some of today’s most celebrated artists, art historians and curators, the podcast launches with the Talks programme from the 2022 edition of Frieze Masters – one of the world’s leading art fairs – and offers compelling insight into the influence of historical art on contemporary perspectives and creativity. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial

Dec 16, 2022 • 41min
Doron Langberg & Nicholas Cullinan
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Doron Langberg & Nicholas Cullinan, Director of the National Portrait Gallery in London. Their conversation explores various aspects of Langberg’s work including his portraiture in the context of the resurrection of figurative painting, and the influence of his educational background. "Painting really has always been my language, I feel like I almost think of it as my first language. I have been painting since I was very, very young and it's really kind of my way of experiencing the world... for me, my [artistic] process [involves questions of] how I can use painting in a meaningful way and bring something new." – Doron Langberg Doron Langberg (@doronlangberg) was born in 1985 in Yokneam Moshava, Israel and currently lives and works in New York City. He received his MFA from Yale University School of Art, holds a BFA from the University of Pennsylvania, a Certificate from PAFA, and attended the Yale Summer School of Music and Art, Norfolk. Nicholas Cullinan (@nicholascullinan) is an art historian, curator and Director of the National Portrait Gallery in London. About the Frieze Masters Podcast Exploring themes of identity, originality, geopolitics and Blackness through a historical lens, the new Frieze Masters Podcast is now available. Bringing together some of today’s most celebrated artists, art historians and curators, the podcast launches with the Talks programme from the 2022 edition of Frieze Masters – one of the world’s leading art fairs – and offers compelling insight into the influence of historical art on contemporary perspectives and creativity. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial

Dec 5, 2022 • 52min
Zadie Xa & Vivien Zhang
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Zadie Xa & Vivien Zhang in partnership with Whitechapel Gallery (@whitechapelgallery). Their conversation explores Xa’s new exhibition at Whitechapel as they reflect on ideas of cultural identity, the appropriation and gentrification of symbols, and disparities between static and performance art. "[The Yin Yang] feels like a very Korean or Asian thing. This is an authentic image that I can kind of attach meaning to, but then of course, it's something that has been so heavily commodified by the West and in skate and surfboard culture in Vancouver...So I thought, right, it's also devoid of meaning. And it's something that depending on where the symbol sits, has lots of meanings." – Zadie Xa Zadie Xa (@zadiexa) was born in Vancouver, Canada and lives and works in London, UK. Working across textile, painting, installation, live performance, sound, and moving image, Xa’s practice is an exploration of familial legacies, histories of migration, and how different species communicate with one another. Vivien Zhang (@vivienzhang_) is a London-based artist and an Associate Lecturer at Camberwell College of Arts. About the Frieze Masters Podcast Exploring themes of identity, originality, geopolitics and Blackness through a historical lens, the new Frieze Masters Podcast is now available. Bringing together some of today’s most celebrated artists, art historians and curators, the podcast launches with the Talks programme from the 2022 edition of Frieze Masters – one of the world’s leading art fairs – and offers compelling insight into the influence of historical art on contemporary perspectives and creativity. www.frieze.com @friezeofficial