ArtCurious Podcast

In a time where the arts are ever-undervalued, it is increasingly important for us not just to support the arts in our communities, but to look back through periods of history where artists were applauded for making a significant difference. And in the case of one very special American troop in the midst of World War Two, artists and creative types were tasked specifically with using their skills to preserve people. Art here became a life-saving force- literally. A force for good, even through multiple means of deception. We are indebted to ghostarmy.org for their images, information, and wonderful documentary! LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

Today’s episode is a rebroadcast from our first season and originally aired in November 2016. We’re re-releasing it now in conjunction with our second season as the action at the center of this mystery is absolutely in line with our theme of art and World War Two-- and is a particularly nice follow-up to our last episode on the Fuhrermuseum. If you’re a longtime listener to this podcast, you’re not going to want to miss this, as I’m including an all-new update to this story at the end of the episode bases on some recent news reports. Here it is: What happened to the Amber Room? LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

Today, we’re digging into the story behind one of the most significant museums never built-- Hitler’s Fuhrermuseum-- what was his obsession with art, and was his “World’s greatest museum” really going to be as great as it purported to be? LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

How did Walt Disney and his team, especially a blustery cartoon duck, get involved so specifically in wartime propaganda? LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

This episode is all about American World War Two propaganda posters: what they were, who created them, and how America was fighting the war via words and pictures. It wasn’t all about manpower and military might: the U.S. fought with art, too. LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

In the winter of 1945, a World War II infantryman for the United States would be supplied with gear that was to be carried and trekked from location to location, regardless of weather, ailment, or occurrence. All of this gear alone could easily weigh a good 50 to 60 pounds. Add on a rifle or pistol, bullets and any appropriate add-ons needed to maintain, clean, and restock a weapon, and you are talking a serious load to haul around. To a handful of these men, however, it wasn’t their guns, their helmets, or their first aid kits that were the most significant pieces of equipment that they transported to the battlefield. No- there was a more specialized tool of utter importance. As one soldier, Edward Reep, noted, quote, “I fought the war more furiously perhaps with my paintbrush than with my weapons.” Today, we're discussing a group of dedicated and talented artists who threw themselves in the middle of war in order to capture the experience and create art about it. LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

In this episode, we contemplate the way that fine art inspired, affected, and ultimately molded the man who would become the biggest architect of terror in the 20th century. LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

Today marks the one year anniversary since we launched our very first episode! This is a special episode for you, our listeners. Many of you called, emailed, and contacted us on social media to ask questions big and small. Here are some of my favorites. Most of all,  thank you. I do this for you, and without your ears, we wouldn't be here. Thank you for a year of love and support! LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

Season Two of ArtCurious begins now! It was the most widespread war in history, involving the participation of more than one hundred million people from around the world, including the greatest powers across the globe. It affected life in myriad ways, and its reach was one of the most horrible. Between the deaths on the battlefield and the mass killings of civilians, an estimated 50 to 85 million fatalities occurred, making it the deadliest conflict in all of recorded human history. And yet, at the same time, it spurred on glimpses of positivity in the midst of this darkness: giving rise to the so-called Greatest Generation, and leading to advances in medicine and aviation, in information technology, and many other sectors. This was World War Two. But what did the war have to do with art? And how are the effects of the war still being felt today? LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

Hi ArtCurious listeners,  I’m so excited to announce that I’m coming back to you with a whole new season of episodes beginning on Monday, July 31st. I’ve loved working on this project and can’t wait to share it with you, so mark your calendars now and be sure to subscribe to us on iTunes or the podcatcher of your choice to guarantee that you don’t miss this or any of our future episodes. I also have another exciting opportunity for you. Next month,  we will be celebrating our one year anniversary! To commemorate it, I’ll be releasing a special “ask me anything” mini-episode, and YOU are invited to participate. Send me any questions or comments that you like, and I will try and answer as many as I can. And you get a chance to be part of our history! Here’s how it’s done: 1. Email me at artcuriouspodcast@gmail.com with "AMA" in the subject line 2. Contact us via the website 3. Hit us up on Twitter or Instagram @artcuriouspod, or leave us comments on our Facebook site 4.  If you want to leave us a voice message (and possibly hear your own voice on the show), call and leave a message at area code 919-526-0212. DEADLINE: July 26 Thank you, all, for an exciting first year and a thrilling second season. Looking forward to sharing more with you soon. www.artcuriouspodcast.com

This is a rebroadcast of our fifth episode, which was originally released on October 13, 2016. Death has always been a part of art history. And so much of the great art that we know and love today works in the capacity to stave off one of the terrible side effects of death-- being forgotten. Andy Warhol’s series, Death and Disaster, is one of the most well-known and polarizing of his career. But Warhol wasn't the first artist to focus on the everyday tragedy of death as a subject to quite this revealing and exploitative extent. That honor might very well belong to someone else-- an immigrant photographer working in Manhattan in the 1930s and 1940s. LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

This is a rebroadcast of our third episode, which was originally released on September 12, 2016. Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, had an image problem: she was seen as frivolous, silly, and out-of-touch. In order to combat her poor press, the royal court commissioned a series of portraits of the queen to make her more relatable and sympathetic. Such images act as excellent propaganda machines, giving Marie Antoinette a much-needed positive spin. But what is even more marvelous is the backstory of the artist who created these portraits-- because the painter who was chosen to portray the highest woman in the land was… another woman. Talk about a revolution.  LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

What’s the problem of the woman artist? And how can we fix it?  Today, we’re talking about women artists-- the historical difficulties in becoming an artist, the challenges present therein, and the limitations and legacies of one very important Renaissance painter. LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

Conservators are art heroes: they transform damaged or dirty works of art into beautiful, fresh works for public consumption. Then why is it that conservation has been at the center of some of the biggest art historical controversies of the last fifty years? What does a conservator really do, and what happens when conservation goes too far?         LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

We are incredibly thrilled to release a bonus episode with our friend, Andrea Parrish, at A Thousand Things to Talk About! This daily podcast is the perfect start to your morning, with a brief 2-3 minute episode with thought-provoking questions and research. A Thousand Things to Talk About also offers the occasional "deep dive," and we're so excited to be a part of this one-- What is Art? It's a question that seems simple, but in reality, is it? LEARN MORE: Artcuriouspodcast.com SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/artcurious-podcast/id1142736861 INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod