Who Arted: Weekly Art History for All Ages

Get ready for this year's Arts Madness Tournament with a quick refresher on Salvador Dali. Season 6 of Who ARTed will have 64 mini episodes over the next 64 days to help you learn about all the artists/artworks listeners can vote on in this year's tournament.Arts Madness Tournament links: Check out the Brackets Tell me which artist you think will win this year's tournament Give a shoutout to your favorite teacher (I'll send a $50 Amazon gift card to the teacher who gets the most shoutouts on this form by Feb 27) Salvador Dali's most famous painting is The Persistence of Memory from 1931. The painting is surprisingly small just 9 ½ by 13 inches or slightly larger than the average sheet of paper. It is one of the most widely recognized and referenced images of the surrealist movement. For those who don’t know it by name, you will likely recognize the description of clocks melting in the desert. The melting of clocks much like the ambiguous figure in the middle of the composition reference a metamorphosis. Things are in a state of flux. Ants crawl all over the clocks like fruit left to rot on the ground. Dali referred to this work describing time as a soft cheese and yet with all of the absurdity, there are realistic elements drawn from the landscape of his home in Spain. There is an unsettling mix of the real and absurd which served as a device surrealist artists would use to call into question the rational world and whether things truly are as hard and fast as we might at first perceive them to be. The clocks melt because even time, like all things, is relative and malleable. Other episodes to check out: The full episode on Salvador Dali from season 3 Art Smart - Surrealism Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today I want to talk to you about a few things. First off, as it is Friday, I want to share a fun fact about one of my absolute favorite artists, Keith Haring. One of his most famous and popular images, the three eyed smiley face came about by accident. In October 1981, Haring was invited to paint directly on the wall of the Annina Nosei Gallery. He was participating in a group show of Neo Expressionist Painting, because in the early days, that’s how Haring’s work was categorized. So he began painting. He started outlining the border and working his way in to fill out the composition. Keith was an artist who always brought a youthful, joyous spirit ot his work and he decided to pull some inspiration from his childhood. He thumbed through the pages of his old workbook and decided to paint following the instructions for a guided drawing of Mickey Mouse. He started with a large, grinning mouth then added one of Mickey’s oval eyes. Except he quickly realized he had rendered it off center. The eyes were too far apart, but he couldn’t exactly wipe it off the wall and start fresh. He compensated by adding a third eye to balance the composition in one of the most compelling proofs that Bob Ross was right in declaring "We don't make mistakes; we just have happy accidents."Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zaria Forman is known for her pastel drawings documenting the environment and climate change. The thing is, her work is so much bigger than that statement would lead you to believe. Her works are not your average pastel drawings. First off, they are massive. They are of a size that forces you to stop and take notice. The choice of soft pastels is fitting as these drawings, much like the environment, are beautiful but fragile.My guests were Kaitlyn and Corbie, hosts of the podcast, Those Art Teachers. You can find Those Art Teachers on your favorite podcast app, and they are active on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

While many artists took inspiration from all types of flowers Vincent van Gogh became closely associated with one type in particular. While he did color studies using several types of flowers, he loved the sunflowers. Vincent wanted to be known as the painter of sunflowers. The man and the flower became so closely associated that at his funeral many friends paid their respects bringing sunflowers to the funeral. The sunflower is an interesting choice though. Most artists shied away from sunflowers. They preferred the soft and delicate petals of roses, carnations and lilies. The sunflower was coarse and unrefined. I would say that is likely what drew Van Gogh to the sunflower. He always had a soft spot for those on the fringes. Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andrew Fuller first earned viral fame with a pie that appeared to have a human face in it. He has appeared on a few shows: Halloween Baking Championship (2018), Candy Land (2020) but the Netflix hit baking competition show, Is it Cake? really catapulted him to the next level. On this episode, I talked with Nathan Ragland, host of Post Modern Art Podcast about Fuller and his mindblowing, hyperrealistic cake.You can find Post Modern Art Podcast on all the major platforms. Here are links to find Nathan and his work: Website Discord MerchOf course, as we are talking about Andrew Fuller who is doing such amazing things all the time, you may want to check out his site https://www.sugarfreakshow.com/ which has links to his social media so you can follow him to see more.Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Buddhist monks of Tibet who are known for their tradition of sand mandalas destroy the work after completing it. The word mandala comes from Sanskrit meaning “circle” but a mandala is not your average two-dimensional shape consisting of an outer boundary called the circumference made up of points all equidistant from a fixed center point. A mandala representation of the universe. While many people talk about Mandalas in reference to radial symmetry, mandala designs have spiritual significance beyond mere repetition. The act of creating a sand mandala is meditative. It requires monks to focus, to be calm, still and deliberate in their actions. And then, after completing the construction, they move on to a ritual deconstructing the piece. Even the deconstruction is a part of the artistic process with spiritual significance. Destroying the sand art is a reminder of the transitory nature of the universe.Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jean-Michel Basquiat has created some of the most highly valued American paintings ever to go on auction. Basquiat sought to remake art history in his image, and I would say he was successful. His triptych, Horn Players, is one of the artworks required for the AP Art History curriculum studied by American high school students. In the middle of February 1981, a group exhibition opened at P.S.1 in New York. The show featured over a hundred different artists from the underground art scene. There were paintings, drawings, photographs, objects and graffiti all mixed together in an explosive portrait of the post-punk scene. The show was called New York/New Wave and many affectionately referred to it as the armory show of the 80s. The armory show was of course the famous exhibition from 1913 that introduced European modern art to the American audience. This time though, it wasn’t European artists upending the New York gallery scene. This time, the revolution was coming from inside the community. Among the artists on display was a 20 year old by the name of Jean-Michel Basquiat. He had previously made a name for himself as a graffiti artist. Basquiat and his friend Al Diaz created a text-based project SAMO spraypainting messages around new york. They were particularly active in the area where numerous gallery spaces were located. SAMO often sought to be a little bit humorous, but also gives an outsider’s perspective on the art world with phrases like “SAMO AS AN END TO PLAYING ART” or “SAMO FOR THE SO-CALLED AVANT-GARDE”. Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Piet Mondrian is best known for painting primary colored squares and rectangles. For this episode, fellow art teacher, Jeff Arndt and I talked about the big ideas that led Mondrian to make such simple work. He pushed the ideas of modern abstract art farther than anyone else. Mondrian limited himself to basic elements of simple lines, shapes and colors to focus on the principles of design like balance and proportion.A common misconception about Mondrian is that his personal life was as bland as his art. Mondrian was actually quite charming. He took pains to be elegantly dressed at all times, he was kind and and avid dancer. He was said to be great at the foxtrot and the charleston in particular. The ladies loved him, and he had multiple relationships including an engagement he called off in 1911, but he never married. I think my favorite odd bit though is according to a biographer, among the women of Amsterdam, Mondrian “developed a reputation for interesting, prolonged kisses, sometimes lasting for more than half an hour.” but back on point, he loved dancing and he loved music. While he was in Paris, he was particularly fond of the black American musicians that passed through including greats like Louis Armstrong. Mondrian talked about how the pianist accompanying Armstrong “allowed the bass line played with his left hand to fall out of sync, contrasting with the rhythmically varied ‘melody’ played by his right hand” Mondrian was all about the rhythm.Who ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dancing at the Louvre is part of Faith Ringgold's series of 12 story quilts called The French Collection and it is on the AP Art History list (it is one of 250 artworks American high school students study for AP Art History courses, which give them the chance to earn college credit).In her Dancing at the Louvre quilt, Ringgold is writing the story of Willa Marie Simone, a fictional character that seems to be inspired a bit by Ringgold and her mother. Willa moves to Paris, meets major figures like Henri Matisse,the iconic artist, Josephine Baker, the American born French singer, dancer and actress who became the first black woman to star in a major motion picture and Rosa Parks, the legend of the civil rights movement. Over the series of 12 story quilts, known as the French Collection, Willa Marie Simone goes on many adventures and becomes a successful artist and businesswoman. In Ringgold’s life, she had been taught to admire the achievements of men like Pablo Picasso who innovated by copying African masks. In her education, she was told to study art education because fine arts was only for men. She looked at all of these societal bariers and envisioned a figure who could push past them. In Ringgold’s story, the protagonist is a black woman and the white male european artists, have a walk on role. The Louvre is an iconic cultural institution, home to some of the finest artworks in the history of the world and Ringgold’s Willa Marie Simone feels unintimidated. She joyously flouts conventions and dances in the hallowed halls.In this episode, I mentioned The Art Explora Academy from the Art Explora Foundation, which was kind enough to include some of my episodes in their media library and gave my show it's first big break. Check out The Art Explora Academy here: Academy.ArtExplora.orgWho ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I am sick with Covid and with the ups and downs of the illness, I wasn't sure when I would be up for recording this week. Consequently, I made this a mini episode with no guest, which is fine because it is on a topic that pretty much no guest wants to talk about anyways, JMW Turner's painting, The Slave Ship.Just as a side note, while I am mildly miserable at times, my experience of Covid would be a lot worse if I weren't up to date on my vaccines. Please be sure to get vaccinated if you are able to. It not only protects you, but also helps to protect those around you.Turner's painting of The Slave Ship from 1840 was originally titled "Slavers Throwing Overboard the Dead and Dying" and the event that inspired this work is exactly as horrific as it sounds. The captain of the ship was throwing men overboard in order to collect insurance money on those lost at sea, or to use a more accurate term, murdered. In this episode, I mentioned that one of my favorite fellow Airwave Media podcasts, The Constant, did an episode about how ships would be sent to sea to sink for the insurance money.Check out that episode here: The Constant | ShipwrecklessWho ARTed is an Airwave Media Podcast.Connect with me:Website | Twitter | Instagram | TiktokSupport the show:Merch from TeePublic | Make a DonationAs always you can find images of the work being discussed at www.WhoARTedPodcast.com and of course, please leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. You might hear it read out on the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices