Who Arted: Weekly Art History for All Ages

My guest this week is Mark Vernon, author of Awake! William Blake and the Power of Imagination. We discussed William Blake, the famous poet and visual artist known for his spiritually charged work. The piece we discussed was The Ancient of Days. Check out my other podcasts  Fun Facts Daily | Art Smart | Rainbow Puppy Science Lab Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast. If you are interested in advertising on this or any other Airwave Media show, email: advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, I wanted to share an episode of my other podcast, Fun Facts Daily, with some interesting information about clay and ceramics. You'll learn what makes things blow up in the kiln and how to avoid it. The episode also covers interesting facts from ancient uses of ceramics to modern applications in smartphones and even space shuttles. Check out my other podcasts  Fun Facts Daily | Art Smart | Rainbow Puppy Science Lab Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast. If you are interested in advertising on this or any other Airwave Media show, email: advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest for this episode is Kathleen Langore, author of a new book about the artist, Amalia Kussner. She was a highly successful portrait artist who specialized in miniatures. Kussner drew her subjects in a realistic but soft and flattering style that left her patrons feel like she was giving them the best version of their likeness. Her miniature portraits were a big deal as she traveled to Europe painting for royalty. Pick up a copy of The Miniature Painter Revealed: Amalia Kussner’s Gilded Age Pursuit of Fame and Fortune by Kathleen Langone on Amazon or wherever you get your books. Listen to Kathleen Langone's podcast, People Hidden in History Listen to my episode on another royal portrait artist, Elizabeth Vigée Le Brun Check out my other podcasts  Fun Facts Daily | Art Smart | Rainbow Puppy Science Lab Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast. If you are interested in advertising on this or any other Airwave Media show, email: advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explore the life and work of celebrated American artist Wayne Thiebaud, known for his vibrant and textured paintings of everyday objects. Born in 1920, Thiebaud's early experiences as a sign painter and an apprentice animator at Walt Disney Studios shaped his understanding of visual communication and iconic forms. Though often associated with the Pop Art movement of the 1960s, Thiebaud’s approach was distinct. While artists like Andy Warhol embraced mechanical reproduction, Thiebaud celebrated the painter's touch, using thick impasto, brilliant colors, and strong shadows to bring his subjects to life. His signature works feature commonplace items, particularly diner foods like pies, cakes, and gumballs, transforming them into objects of formal study and cultural nostalgia. Thiebaud's career gained national recognition following his inclusion in the landmark 1962 exhibition, "New Painting of Common Objects," at the Pasadena Art Museum. A deep dive into one of his early masterpieces, Pie a la Mode (1961), reveals the key elements of his style: the luscious, tactile quality of the paint, the signature halos of color outlining the object, and the ability to find artistic complexity in the simple pleasures of American life. Beyond his famous still lifes, Thiebaud also applied his unique vision to compelling landscapes of San Francisco and detailed figure paintings, solidifying his legacy as one of America's most beloved painters and a dedicated long-time professor at the University of California, Davis. Related episodes: Claes Oldenburg Roy Lichtenstein Check out my other podcasts  Fun Facts Daily | Art Smart | Rainbow Puppy Science Lab Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast. If you are interested in advertising on this or any other Airwave Media show, email: advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Man Ray was a pioneer of cameraless photography. His signature technique was the "Rayograph" created by placing objects directly onto light-sensitive paper often manipulating them during exposure. Of course, that was not his only trick. Man Ray experimented with solarisation and in his piece Ingres's Violin, he painted on a photograph, then took another picture of the manipulated image. For this episode, my guests were Mark Small and Jack Shoulder, the writers of a new book Museum Bums: A Cheeky Loot at Butts in Art. They are also behind the wildly popular Museum Bums Instagram account. Show them some support: Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/museumbums/?hl=en⁠ Book: ⁠https://a.co/d/fDvMMBb⁠ Calendar: ⁠https://a.co/d/gWl0QPG⁠  Cards: ⁠https://a.co/d/4fd1EaJ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amrita Sher-Gil, born in 1913 to a Sikh aristocrat and a Hungarian-Jewish opera singer, was a trailblazing artist who blended European and Indian influences. After studying art in Paris and achieving early success at the Grand Salon, she returned to India in 1934. Though initially met with resistance due to her modern style, Sher-Gil's evocative portrayals of Indian life and her unique fusion of cultural traditions ultimately garnered critical acclaim. Her paintings, like the renowned "Bride's Toilet," showcased her bold colors, expressive figures, and insightful observations. Despite her untimely death in 1941, Sher-Gil's legacy as a pioneer of modern Indian art endures, inspiring generations of artists and solidifying her place as one of India's most celebrated creative figures. Related episodes: ⁠Paul Cezanne | Mont Sainte-Victoire⁠ ⁠Charuvi Agrawal | 26,000 Bells of Hanuman⁠ ⁠Shiva Nataraja | Shiva Lord of the Dance Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explore the life and work of David Hockney, one of the most influential British artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. Born in Yorkshire in 1937, Hockney's rebellious spirit and prodigious talent were evident from his early days at the Royal College of Art. His move to Los Angeles in 1964 marked a pivotal moment, as he swapped the grey skies of England for the bright, constant sunlight of California. This new environment inspired his most iconic motifs, including pristine swimming pools, modernist architecture, and a vibrant, flat style perfectly captured with new acrylic paints. Hockney became celebrated for his psychologically rich double portraits, his innovative photographic collages known as "joiners," and in later years, a passionate return to painting the English landscape of his youth. A deep dive into Hockney's 1967 masterpiece, A Bigger Splash, reveals his genius for capturing time, motion, and atmosphere. The large 8 foot by 8 foot painting juxtaposes a serene, California setting with the chaotic, fleeting explosion of water from an unseen diver. While often associated with Pop Art, Hockney's work is deeply personal, celebrating the joy of looking and challenging the conventions of perception. From paintbrushes to the iPad, Hockney has remained a relentless innovator, solidifying his status as a modern master. Check out my other podcasts  Fun Facts Daily | Art Smart | Rainbow Puppy Science Lab Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast. If you are interested in advertising on this or any other Airwave Media show, email: advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a young adult, Edvard Munch studied art. He was influenced early on by the Impressionists, but he really came into his own when he began using painting as a way of expressing his inner struggles. He is best known today for his expressionistic works like The Scream. Interestingly The Scream is not about a person screaming. The tormented figure in the painting is actually suffering an anxiety attack and overwhelmed by the din or the noise of the world around him. The specific look of the figure may have actually been based on a Peruvian mummy that was on display in the World’s Fair in Paris in 1889. Check out my other podcasts  Fun Facts Daily | Art Smart | Rainbow Puppy Science Lab Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast. If you are interested in advertising on this or any other Airwave Media show, email: advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guests this week were the author and illustrator of the fantastic book I’M NOT YOUR MUSE: Uncovering the Overshadowed Brilliance of Women Artists & Visionaries. I spoke with Lori Zimmer and Maria Krasinski about the artists they discovered and the process of creating the book. I'm Not Your Muse tells the stories of thirty-one female artists whose achievements have largely been underappreciated. Find the book on Amazon or wherever you get your books. Related episodes: Frida Kahlo Amrita Sher-Gil The Club: Where American Women Artists Found Refuge in Belle Époque Paris Check out my other podcasts  Fun Facts Daily | Art Smart | Rainbow Puppy Science Lab Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast. If you are interested in advertising on this or any other Airwave Media show, email: advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The transformation mask is a carved and painted sculpture, a status symbol, a costume element and a simple machine all at once. Pulling the strings on the mask allows the wearer to move parts that effectively animate the mask and bring it to life in front of the gathered crowd. Kwakwaka’wakw artists created a number of different masks representing different figures. Check out my other podcasts  Fun Facts Daily | Art Smart | Rainbow Puppy Science Lab Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast. If you are interested in advertising on this or any other Airwave Media show, email: advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices