ArtCurious Podcast

This fall, I was greeted by a thrilling opportunity- a ridiculously low air fare from the U.S. to St. Petersburg, Russia. It allowed for the chance to experience the glory and and splendor of the Russian tsars through the extant palaces in St. Petersburg proper and its environs. One of the most awe-inspiring is the Catherine Palace, a rococo summer residence for the imperial families of yore, commissioned by the Empress Elizabeth in the early 18th century. And up until World War II, the Catherine Palace housed something so incredible, so coveted, and so gorgeous that for hundreds of years, travelers from all over the world flocked to admire it. So extraordinary was this treasure that it was frequently referred to as the "Eighth Wonder of the World." And then, in the early 1940s with the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union, this priceless creation was stolen, removed from its Russian stronghold and hidden away. And to this day, it has still never been found. What happened to the Amber Room?// Please SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW our show—we can’t thank you enough! Check www.artcuriouspodcast.com for images from today’s show, as well as information about our other episodes. And come find us on Twitter and Instagram @artcuriouspod. https://www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

Back in 2002, I remember one day when I was browsing a new releases table at my local bookstore and a particular book caught my eye. What I noticed first was the dust jacket- its background was an old, handwritten letter, across which a huge font, in bright red letters, the color of blood, trumpeted the author’s name- Patricia Cornwell-across the cover. It seemed like yet another crime novel, one among hundreds. And so, I moved on, until I saw the subtitle of the book: Jack the Ripper: Case Closed. Now, I am as intrigued by unsolved crimes as much as the next person, so I cracked the cover of the book and began to read the dust jacket’s accompanying description. In it, the author released a bombshell statement: she had purportedly solved the mystery of Jack the Ripper’s identity, which had evaded researchers, historians, and police for over one hundred years. And to those of us in the art world, her suspected killer hit a bit too close to home. A painter-- and a well-known and much praised one, at that-- had committed the famous murders, she wrote. Jack the Ripper, she said, was the English painter Walter Sickert. In this second half of our special two-part Halloween episode, we are going to get into the nitty-gritty details of the Sickert-as-Ripper theory. If you’re just tuning in to the ArtCurious Podcast for the first time, please stop and listen to Part One of this Halloween segment first and get the backstory on Jack the Ripper’s crimes, as well as a brief biography of Walter Sickert. // Please SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW our show—we can’t thank you enough! Check www.artcuriouspodcast.com for images from today’s show, as well as information about our other episodes. And come find us on Twitter and Instagram @artcuriouspod. https://www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

Back in 2002, I was browsing a new releases table at my local bookstore when a particular book caught my eye. It seemed like yet another crime novel, one among hundreds. And so, I moved on, until I saw the subtitle of the book: Jack the Ripper: Case Closed. In it, the author released a bombshell statement: she had purportedly solved the mystery of Jack the Ripper's identity, which had evaded researchers, historians, and police for over one hundred years.  Jack the Ripper, she said, was the English painter Walter Sickert.  If you are just tuning in to the ArtCurious Podcast for the first time, please stop and listen to Episode #6 to get the backstory on Jack the Ripper's crimes.  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

19th century London must have been a real sight to behold. It was increasing by leaps and bounds, becoming, by the mid-point of the century, the largest city in the world. London became the place, along with America, for people the world over to begin their fresh starts. But that isn't to say that 19th century London was all roses. The vast expansion the city experienced had some pretty terrible downsides. It was overcrowded, and the infrastructure was not able to keep up with the massive influx of people from all over England and the world. Disease was rampant and morale was low. And then, of course, there was the crime. In 1888, Londoners clamoring for a bit of excitement to spice up the drudgery of their unhealthy lives got far more than they bargained for. They got weeks of abject terror surrounding a madman who slaughtered women in London’s East End… Who was never identified or caught. And more than 100 years later, we are still no closer to really identifying one of the most terrible killers of all time. Or are we? In this first half of our special two-part Halloween episode, we are going to delve into a theory that identifies Jack the Ripper as the English painter Walter Sickert. And come back next week to hear the second half of the show and see images of Sickert's work. // Please SUBSCRIBE and REVIEW our show—we can’t thank you enough! Check www.artcuriouspodcast.com for images from today’s show, as well as information about our other episodes. And come find us on Twitter and Instagram @artcuriouspod. https://www.instagram.com/artcuriouspod/ https://twitter.com/artcuriouspod

in 1888, Londoners clamoring for a bit of excitement to spice up the drudgery of their lives got far more than they bargained for. They got weeks of abject terror surrounding a madman who slaughtered women in London's East End... who was never identified or caught. And more than 100 years later, we are still no closer to really identifying one of the most terrible killers of all time.  Or are we? In this first half of our special two-part Halloween episode, we are going to delve into a theory that identifies Jack the Ripper as the English painter Walter Sickert. 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

Andy Warhol's take on mortality wasn't about memorializing. He instead focused on the direct causes of death, or the aftermath of a terrible accident. His 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 extend. 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

Death has always been a part of art history. That's one of the beautiful things about art-- it can detail and document and celebrate every facet of our existence. 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. Portraits, stone monuments, ancient coins-- they all aim to ensure that the subjects depicted will be remembered and revered for all eternity. But Andy Warhol’s take on mortality wasn't about memorializing. He instead focused on the direct causes of death, or the aftermath of a terrible accident. His 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. No, that honor might very well belong to someone else-- an immigrant photographer working in Manhattan in the 1930s and 1940s. In this episode, we discover the subject matter and motivations behind Andy Warhol's Death and Disaster series, and relate them to the work of the greatest crime scene photographer in history, Weegee. // Please subscribe to ArtCurious on iTunes, and be sure to check out our website, www.artcuriouspodcast.com. Definitely check us out on Twitter and Instagram-- we can be found under @artcuriouspod, and we are posting awesome tidbits daily! We also have a Facebook page. Looking forward to hearing from you!

There are lots of questions that come up in every art history classroom. We hear them over and over again. What is art, really, and how can you define it? Why is the Mona Lisa smiling? What happened to the Winged Victory's arms? And then there's one that you'll hear, or that you'll even think yourself, especially if you are a fan or scholar of Renaissance art.  Why, people ask. Why are Michelangelo's women so... un-womanly? 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

There are lots of questions that come up in every art history classroom or lecture hall. We hear them over and over again. What is art, really, and how can you define it? Why is the Mona Lisa smiling? What happened to the Winged Victory’s arms? And there's another one that you'll hear, or that you'll even think yourself, especially if you are a fan or scholar of a particular Renaissance master's works. It's a question that I have personally heard asked point-blank in class and whispered in sacred spaces in Rome and in Florence. Visitors straining their necks to stare up at a ceiling, and others sneaking peeks at gleaming marble tombs have asked this question. Why, they ask. Why are Michelangelo’s women so… well, so un-womanly? What's going on here? In this episode, we are going to uncover the conundrum of Michelangelo's women and some theories behind their design, including one fascinating idea set aside by a 21st century physician. // Please subscribe to ArtCurious on iTunes, or check out the latest episode here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @artcuriouspod

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

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 was 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. // Don't forget to check out our website at www.artcuriouspodcast.com for more information and related images, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @artcuriouspod.

Vincent Van Gogh's suicide is a huge part of the mythology surrounding him: as much as the famous tale of the cut-off ear is. This so-called "tortured genius," it is said, was so broken down by life and failure that he had no choice but to end his life. Right? But in 2011, two Pulitzer Prize-winning authors published a book titled Van Gogh: The Life that stunned the art world. Therein, Gregory White Smith and Stephen Naifeh state that the artist didn't actually commit suicide. No, they say: he was actually murdered.  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

Van Gogh’s suicide is as much a part of his story as the famous tale of the cut-off ear is. He’s been called the perfect embodiment of the tortured genius, a creature so agonized by life and failure that he sought his own death as the only solution. But in 2011, two Pulitzer Prize-winning authors published a book titled Van Gogh: The Life that stunned the art world. In their book, authors Gregory White Smith and Stephen Naifeh state that the artist didn’t actually commit suicide. No-- they say, he was actually murdered. Follow us @artcuriouspod and subscribe for more!

The inaugural episode of the ArtCurious Podcast explores the world's most famous work of art: Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa. It is iconic, incredible, and unforgettable-- but is the work on view in Paris's Louvre Museum today the real deal? Host Jennifer Dasal uncovers the story of the Mona Lisa from its creation in the 16th century through its 1911 theft and to its current status as untouchable superstar, breaking down the strange stories and rumors swirling around 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

The inaugural episode of the ArtCurious Podcast explores the world's most famous work of art: Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa. It is iconic, incredible, and unforgettable-- but is the work on view in Paris's Louvre Museum today the real deal? Host Jennifer Dasal uncovers the story of the Mona Lisa from its creation in the 16th century through its 1911 theft and to its current status as untouchable superstar, breaking down the strange stories and rumors swirling around it.