The Lonely Palette

I can't help the way I'm feeling/Goddess of love, please take me to your leader/I can't help, I keep on dancing. - Lady GagaThe neoplatonic ideal of beauty, the girl on the half-shell, the naked chick riding a clam. Her tilted head and fluttery hair are recognized by everyone and their grandma, but no one - experts included - can explain just why in the heck this painting is so iconic. Shell we take on the challenge?See the images.Music used:Django Reinhardt, “Django’s Tiger”Joan Baez, “Diamonds and Rust”The Blue Dot Sessions, “TwoPound,” “Coulis Coulis,” “Delmendra,” “No Smoking,” “Belle Anette,” “Rue Severine,” “Ranch Hand,” “Pastel de Nata,” “Khfett”Lady Gaga, “Venus”Episode sponsor:The Art of Crime PodcastSupport the show by becoming a patron or by just sending us a tip. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

See the images:bit.ly/45wNrSbMusic used:Django Reinhardt, “Django’s Tiger”The Blue Dot Sessions, “Thread Indigo,” “Monder,” “Tall Journey,” “Stephi,” “Morning Glare”Helen Reddy, “I Am Woman” (performed at the Mobilize for Women's Lives Rally in Washington in 1989)Support the show:www.patreon.com/lonelypaletteEpisode sponsors:Jay Handy Financial Services (for artists!)www.signalpointinvest.com/team/jay-handy/Altenewwww.altenew.comDiscount code: TAMAR10%OFF Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

See the Images:bit.ly/3PMpK3oMusic Used:Django Reinhardt, “Django’s Tiger”The Andrews Sisters, "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen"The Blue Dot Sessions, “Slate Tracker,” “Laser Focus,” “The Griffiths,” “Crumbtown,” “Discovery Harbor,” “Leave the TV On,” “Pickers,” “Caraval, “Lady Marie”Support Hub & Spoke's Independence Fundraiser:www.hubspokeaudio.org/july4 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

See the images:bit.ly/3ChhuAE Music used:Django Reinhardt, “Django’s Tiger”The Andrews Sisters, "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen"The Blue Dot Sessions, “Bedroll,” “A Common Pause,” “Palms Down,” “Desmontes,” “Delamine,” “Greylock,” “Angel Tooth,” “Dear Myrtle”Joe Dassin, “Les Champs-Elysees" Episode sponsor:The Art of Colour: The History of Art in 39 Pigments: bit.ly/43Qp1SJ Support the show!www.patreon.com/lonelypalette Register for our Hub & Spoke live show in Woodstock, VT on June 15:normanwilliams.org/events/podcasts…istening-event/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Happy 7th birthday, The Lonely Palette! We're ringing in our itch with an quick update on next season, which starts in June, and a recording of our live show at On Air Fest, which was held in Brooklyn this past February.Please enjoy this revamped and refreshed episode of Mary Kelly's "Post-Partum Document," smash that subscribe button, and we'll see you next month.See the episode images:bit.ly/411KA0FSupport the show:www.patreon.com/lonelypalette Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Episode webpage:bit.ly/3jtcOBlMusic used:The Blue Dot Sessions, “Swapping Tubes”The Kinks, “Dedicated Follower of Fashion”Support our year-end fundraiser!bit.ly/3An5jSd Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

See the images:bit.ly/3FX0S3HMusic used:The Andrews Sisters, "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen"The Blue Dot Sessions, “Lerennis,” “Lissa,” “Ice Tumbler,” “Mr. Graves,” “Throughput,” “A Rush of Clear Water,” “Pinky,” “The Green Room”Vivaldi, “Summer”Support our year-end fundraiser!bit.ly/3An5jSd Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

See the images:bit.ly/3iNqpTYMusic used:Django Reinhardt, “Django’s Tiger”The Andrews Sisters, "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen"Charles Daab, “Irish and Scotch melodies (take 2)”The Blue Dot Sessions, “Highway 430,” “Angel Tooth,” “Di Breun,” “Rainy Day Drone,” “No Smoking,” “Cornicob,” “Tarte Tatin,” “Vernouillet,” “Thread of Clouds,” “Set the Tip Jar,” “Homin Brer”Joe Dassin, “Les Champs-Elysees"Support our year-end fundraiser!bit.ly/3An5jSdEpisode sponsor:www.visualartspassage.com/palette Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Dar Williams has been described by The New Yorker as “one of America’s very best singer-songwriters,” but to thirteen-year-old Tamar she was, quite simply, a personal hero: a songwriter whose poetry, poignancy, and humor could capture at once the authentic voices of an inner child, a searching young adult, and a wizened sage. We met in person in 2013 at Dar’s songwriting retreat, and our friendship has been evolving ever since, exploring together the rigors of writing and storytelling through sound and song, and what it means to dip in and out of a creative space as a way of simply getting through the day.Dar has recently published a book about songwriting that is chock full of philosophical wisdom and applicable nuggets, many of which borne from a decade of retreats. We sat down together to talk about songwriting, art museums, the art of writing songs about art, and specifically her evocative, ambivalent "Mark Rothko Song," which tackles it all head-on.[2:05] Dar’s relationship with museums and creating a space for poetic thinking.[8:40] Specific museums, exhibitions, paintings that have inspired Dar’s songs: Dia, “Made in America,” the Fogg.[11:45] Writing Mark Rothko Song.  Where did Dar go?  Where did Dar really go?[14:45] The difficulties inherent in writing about art.  What prompted the writing of this song?  Dar’s first encounter with Rothko’s “Untitled (Blue Green)” and the first verse.[20:15] Diving into the prosody of the song, how the music and lyrics support the voice of the song: finger picking, major to minor, chord to chord, key to key, mood to mood.[27:41] Return to the lyrics and narrative.  The way that Rothko encourages people to make subjective associations…but then comes the foil of the second verse, creating the contrast between subjective and objective.[33:52] The song’s dueling (or complementary?) aha moments in the bridge and final verse.  People both love Rothko and struggle to connect to him.  Following the narrator’s journey as she wrestles with seeing something versus knowing something.[45:47] Appreciating an honest song about art viewing that doesn’t flatten the characters.  Reflecting on the elements of the song that hold up as Dar has gotten older.[51:19] The similarities between art museums and songwriting retreats: opening up, engaging poetic thinking.[55:28] Also the hazards of living in a space of poetic thinking, especially as a parent.  The necessary objectivity of the caretaking space.[1:02:20] The “Five Things” Rule, and whether Mark Rothko might just be the exception that proves the rule.  Tamar meets her Rothko and gives hope to kind pedestrians everywhere.[1:09:14] Mark Rothko Song in full.Music Used:Dar Williams, “When I Was A Boy”; “Mark Rothko Song” (live); “The Beauty Of The Rain”; “Mark Rothko Song” (album version)Episode Webpage:bit.ly/3RJm9AkSupport the Show:www.patreon.com/lonelypalette Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Episode webpage:bit.ly/3COhnOpMusic used:The Blue Dot Sessions, “Balti”Mandy Patinkin, “Finishing the Hat” from Sunday in the Park with GeorgeSupport the show:www.patreon.com/lonelypalette Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.