The Light Grey Art Lab Podcast

On this week's podcast, we talk to two people who are intimately involved with animals in zoos. First up is Dr. Michael Petersen, a veterinarian who has been practicing medicine for nearly 35 years. Mike not only owns his own practice, but also oversees the care of exotic animals Henry Vilas Zoo in Madison, WI. We talk about how he got into such a unique position, what it's like to work with such amazing creatures, and the passion and collaboration of everyone involved. Next we talk to Anne, who is a volunteer docent at the Kansas City Zoo in Kansas City, MO. Anne acts as the bridge between the zoo and the public working around incredible animals and sharing her knowledge with visitors of the zoo. We talk with Anne about her experience learning, teaching, and the behind the scenes duties she deals with while working in a zoo setting.

On this week's breezy podcast, Lindsay, Jenny, Francesca, and Chris talk about their big summertime plans. Summer is a time to work, play, travel, force others to camp, swim in nasty lakes, and more! As you might have guessed, we can't all agree on what constitutes a good summertime, but we'll take what we can get!

On this week's podcast, we talk with two artists currently featured in the ongoing Animystics exhibition. First up is Ellen Su, a visual development artist, illustrator, and 3-D artist who (with the help of Kyle Moy) created an amazing short film called Spacebound, as well as working for clients such as Pixar, Framestore, Nathan Love and R/GA. Then we talk with Kevin Jay Stanton, a freelance illustrator and the creator of FEZZINE. Kevin works in many media but specializes in cut paper and has worked for a variety of clients such as Sterling Publishing, New York Times, Barnes and Noble, and many more.

On this week's podcast, Lindzo and Big C talk about their trip to Minicon, before moving onto a discussion about board game artwork, and ending with an in-depth discussion of art licensing and trade shows.

There's an old saying, "you can't teach an old dog new tricks." And believe it or not, it's not a metaphor. On this week's podcast, we talk about how amazingly intelligent, compassionate, creative, and almost human-like animals can be.

This week Lindsay and Jenny are joined by the incredible Ruth Voights. Ruth has been teaching liberal arts for more than 30 years at Minneapolis College of Art Design. Ruth is an expert in myth, ritual, Native American culture and art, having been an instructor and a curriculum writer for the American Indian Studies program at the University of Minnesota. As we talk with her this week, we ask a series of questions about the origin of totems, our associations with animals, including taking on their qualities in instances of power, in our stories, and how other cultures incorporate animals into a combination of spiritual, family heritage, and mythical importance.

We're all busy and scheduling is hard. If you cringe every time you say "I'm too busy" because you sound like a broken record, you're not alone. On this week's podcast we talk about what to do in that situation… and end up talking about smalltalk at parties and our favorite go-to subjects.

This week the whole gang is sick and in need of some rest and relaxation. And with April Fool's day upon us, we share our thoughts on some very important issues, including (but not limited to): planning our characters for D&D, silly voices and animals in fantasy literature, Mr. Roger's Neighborhood of Make-Believe toys, those 'good' villains, getting strangers interested in sexy anime, the art of teaching boardgames, friends who hate what you like, and Star Trek: Baby's First Drama.

On this week's podcast we talk about grit; a trait that gives a person the ability to continue trying in the face of insurmountable odds. Inspired by books and articles about tenacity, rewards, and 'grit' in learning, Chris, Jenny, Lindsay, and Francesca discuss what it means to 'stick to it' even when things are tough. We also talk about natural ability versus hard work, and what's more likely to inspire grit - the drive to succeed or the fear of failure?

On this week's podcast, Jenny, Chris, Francesca and Lindsay talk about Work with a capital 'W'. We start by discussing the ability to multitask, or in the case of a few lucky individuals, SUPERTASK! We also talk about fitting a healthy routine into a busy schedules, trusting your gut when it comes to business ventures, the motivations for achieving great things, and finally we tackle a divisive topic; the difference between doing what you love, and doing a J-O-B.

Inspired by our freshly launched calls for art, grant writing, and our own social media footprints, this week's podcast is all about curation. We curate everything we do, from the work we show in a portfolio, to how we speak to clients and coworkers, to the way we interact with people on twitter. In this episode, we talk about how we choose what to share, the power of editing, how we present ourselves to the world, and we wrap up the conversation by talking about how we curate shows at Light Grey Art Lab.

On this week's podcast, Jenny, Lindsay, Chris, and Francesca take a walk down memory lane... all the way to the future! Inspired by an upcoming Yelp! event we're participating in at Architectural Antiques, we talk about objects from our past that shaped who we are, about the things we're dealing with now, and how we predict and plan (or don't) for the future!

On this week's podcast, we talk with author and artist Andy Sturdevant. Andy has a knack for creating public art that invites you in and makes you smile. Andy's recently released book, Potluck Supper with Meeting to Follow, is a collection of essays that examine daily life and experiences in the city. Andy captures the humor in everyday life and questions the spaces and interactions around us.

In the first half of this week's podcast, Lindsay, Francesca and Jenny review the surprising results of our online personality questionnaire. For the second half, we share some behind the scenes process from the making of Guardians, the first installment of Great Personality dating game.

This week's podcast is the second in a series of interviews with creative couples. First, we talk with Sam Bosma and Kali Ciesemier, two illustrators working side by side in Brooklyn, NY. Then we talk with Jessica Roux and Nick Stratton, an illustrator and industrial designer, respectively, also from Brooklyn, NY. We discuss how they work together, drive each other artistically, and how they deal with things like strange quirks and competitive tendencies.