The Conversation Art Podcast
Arts
About
A podcast featuring both one-on-one and three-way roundtable conversations with contemporary artists, dealers, curators, and collectors--based in Los Angeles, but reaching nationally and internationally.
Episodes
- Episode 386- James Delbourgo on the 'Noble Madness' of collectors- from Charles Foster Kane to Norman Bates and others, and what Freud had to say about all of them
James Delbourgo, professor of history at Rutgers University and author of A Noble Madness: the Dark Side of Collecting from Antiquity to Now , talks about: Why he's written about contemporary art so extensively, as a history academic who's…
- Episode 385- Useful Art explodes what your sense of Art with a capital "A" is and can be, with John Byrne, author of "Useful Art- How Activist Artists Can Change the World"
John Byrne , author of " Useful Art- How Activist Artists Can Change the World ," and professor of Useful Art at Liverpool John Moores University's School of Art and Design, talks about: The city of Liverpool and its art community, with ab…
- Episode 384: Boston artist and lifelong art school teacher on photography and teaching in art schools for 46 years
Boston-based photographer Jim Dow talks about: The Boston art community (which is often connected to the art school and universities) and why he's lived there the great majority of his life (he lives in the house he grew up in); he's a ded…
- Episode 383- Sarah Khan: Documenting the Immigrant Experience
Hadley, Massachusetts and NYC artist Sarah K. Khan talks about: How it's a "little miracle" to have a studio (a former chick coop on a farm in the 5-college area of Mass.) after so many years working in kitchens and other spaces not dedica…
- Episode 382: Robbie Conal,from the studio to the streets--applying what you do best to what you care about most
Artist and legendary street artist Robbie Conal talks about: His family history, including his two activist-and-politically inclined parents, his background in fighting the power; moving up to Los Osos (in San Luis Obispo County) as a perm…
- Episode 381- Arleene Correa Valencia: From rural Mexico to the Napa Valley and back, fulfilling a family dream
Napa, CA-based artist Arleene Correa Valencia talks about: Why she lives in Napa, CA, and the two distinct versions of the town, for the wealthy and for the poor ("you're either the owner of the vineyard, or you're working the vineyard," a…
- Episode 380- London-based photographer and writer Michael Collins on the perils of photography, and art criticism, and why to give your viewers the benefit of the doubt
London-based photographer and writer Michael Collins talks about: The flat where he's lived for 35 years, which is getting 'Wallace & Gromit' crowded; how he keeps film in his deep freeze (aka freezer) as opposed to anything edible, and ho…
- Episode 379- artist Linnéa Gabriella Spransy – growing up in a commune, Yale grad school, working as a living artist in Kansas City, and co-founding the gallery Bridge Projects
Pasadena-based artist Linnéa Gabriella Spransy talks about: Growing up between Wisconsin and a commune in Oregon, the latter which she describes as a complete commitment more than an experiment (the town was Wildeville, Cape Junction being…
- Episode 378: Artist Camilla Taylor- "My House Burned Down"
Camilla Taylor , Los Angeles artist, and curator of " My House Burned Down" (at Track16 Gallery ), talks about: Her childhood with complicated religious origins, between her Mormon LDS father and her mother who branched off to start her ow…
- Episode 377- "An artist walks into a bar…" Guy Richards Smit on his New Yorker cartoons, his paintings, and humor in art
Brooklyn-based artist and sometimes New Yorker magazine cartoonist Guy Richards Smit returns to the podcast eight years after his first visit to talk about: His admitted high self-regard, paired with self-awareness, which we identify as be…
- Episode 376: Merging art & life and leaving the city for the country: artist couple and collaborators Gribaudi-Plytas.
In Episode 376, Alex and Theo Gribaudi-Plytas talk about: Their location in rural France, at the southern end of the Champagne region, where there are tons of vineyards, many of which they take friends from out of town to, and how even in…
- Episode 375: Marcie Begleiter on artist residencies, working with nature, leaving big cities, and much more
Marcie Begleiter, an artist based on the Central Coast of California, talks about: artist residencies, including the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology , where she recently did a 4-week residency, including collecting biological specimens/sa…
- Episode 374: "The Murder Next Door," Oakland-based graphic artist Hugh D'Andrade's first graphic novel
Oakland-based graphic artist Hugh D'Andrade, author of the graphic novel "The Murder Next Door," talks about: His first graphic novel, The Murder Next Door, including what led him to finally making a graphic novel after being a big fan of…
- Episode 373: RealTime Arts' Molly & Rusty on interactive happenings in Pittsburgh, where it's all about "Feeling the bean"
In Episode 373, Molly Rice & Rusty Thelin , co-founders of RealTime Arts in Pittsburgh, talk about: The especially niche field of their work, which is the performance of live theater that aligns more with visual art and doesn't really chec…
- Episode 372: Painting, photography, and hard but necessary decisions: Claire Witteveen, an artist in Amsterdam
In Episode 372, the 1st half of the conversation with Amsterdam-based painter and photographer Claire Witteveen , she talks about: Her putting off painting initially in favor of photography, for reasons both practical and related to insecu…
- The White Pube, featuring Gabrielle de la Puente, on 'Poor Artists' and more
Gabrielle de la Puente , half of the art critic duo The White Pube , talks about: A few things people outside of the UK need to know about Liverpool, where she's based; the origin story of the White Pube, when Gabrielle and Zarina were in…
- Taking a Break from Meta- please join me in Boycotting all Meta platforms this week
After learning about the Lights Out Meta campaign, a boycott on all Meta platforms from January 19th thru January 26th, 2025, it sounded like a good idea, and after reading about it more extensively, I think it's a necessary one. Here are…
- Epis. 370: Bullish on Miami 2024- SCOPE Art Show founder Alexis Hubshman
Founder of the SCOPE Art Show , Alexis Hubshman talks about everything from its size (approx. 300,000 sq ft of exhibition space), to the number of galleries exhibited (95 from 27 countries) to how he makes the fair run smoothly; his suppor…
- Epis.#369: Cancel Culture Part 2 (Louis C.K.) and getting Stickered and Nan Goldin's Gagosian show
In the latest OLD NEWS roundup with Emily Colucci of Filthy Dreams, we start by revisiting our prior, charged exchanged about Louis CK, in which Emily was admittedly a bit of an apologist for him, which alienated some listeners- in this ca…
- Episode 368: Tulsa Kinney on her 18 years running Artillery magazine and her complicated relationship with the art world
In Episode 368, Tulsa Kinney , artist and now former founding editor of Artillery magazine, talks about: Why she sold the magazine after running it for 18 years, including burnout but also how impersonal she feels the art world has become…
- Epis. 367: Lisa Schiff's bankruptcy, trashing Paul McCarthy's WS/White Snow, painting underground, and pairing smells with artworks-- OLD NEWS continues with co-host Emily Colucci.
In our continued dissection of the OLD NEWS, Emily Colucci and I discuss: Indicted former art advisor Lisa Schiff and her upcoming bankruptcy auction, to be conducted by Phillips; how Paul McCarthy is slowly throwing out his immense artwor…
- 366: Cancel Culture, an art/fireworks performance gone wrong, the art market, and strategic gallery going- Emily Colucci of Filthy Dreams co-hosts the OLD NEWS
In the latest round of OLD NEWS with former guest Emily Colucci (creator of the art & culture website Filthy Dreams ), we cover: cancel culture through the lens of James Franco (who was part of our original recording back in 2016) and Loui…
- Epis. 365: Brooklyn artist Liz Ainslie: a coveted artist loft, scream-core singing, and artists who stay with the community even after success
The Conversation is doing an Open Call for future guests of the show (thru Oct. 10th)- if you're interested in being a guest, please submit here: "The Conversation Art Podcast" - Guest Open Call (jotform.com) Brooklyn artist, former hardco…
- Episode 364: Turner Prize-winner Jesse Darling may or may not keep making art; new OLD NEWS with co-host Dr. Maiza Hixson
In this New OLD NEWS episode, Dr. Maiza Hixson and I talk about the profile of recent Turner Prize winner Jesse Darling in the New York Times-- We discuss Darling's persona as portrayed in the article, his anti-capitalist leanings; what hi…
- Epis. 363- Friendship and Fraud in the Art World, with author and former art dealer Orlando Whitfield
Writer, former art dealer, and author of All that Glitters- A Story of Friendship, Fraud, and Fine Art , Orlando Whitfield talks about: His interest in street photography, and how philosophy and critical thinking led him to apply and then…
- Art protests, artist ruptures and Miranda July: the latest OLD NEWS w/special guest Maiza Hixson
In Episode 362, artist, curator and recent PhD (from U.C. Santa Barbara) Maiza Hixson co-hosts this episode's OLD NEWS, featuring updates on: protests, including the case of #metoo being spray-painted onto Gustave Courbet's painting 'Origi…
- Epis. 361- Adam Henry on what makes a successful show, and navigating the fluctuations of the art market
To listen to the complete episode with Adam Henry as well as all past Bonus episodes, please become a Patreon supporter of the podcast here: https://www.patreon.com/theconversationpod New York-based artist Adam Henry talks about: His recen…
- Epis. 360- How to Navigate Downward Mobility as an Art Worker- Valerie Werder, Part 2
In the 2nd conversation with author, recovering art worker and academic Valerie Werder , she talks about: the travails of clothes shopping for her job in the blue-chip gallery, not only how fraught it was but how much it brought up class i…
- Journalist Bianca Bosker: a 'normie Philistine' dives into the art world working for artists, dealers and as a museum security guard in attempt to unravel its mysteries
Bianca Bosker , journalist and author of Get the Picture , talks about: The genesis of her deep dive into the art world - working with gallerists and artists, doing art fairs and galleries with collectors, and doing a stint as a security g…
- Valerie Werder turns her intense years working for a blue-chip gallery into an inspired novel, Thieves
This episode features the 1st half of the full episode. To get the full version, please visit: Patreon.com/theconversationpod The Conversation Art Podcast | creating a podcast that goes behind the scenes of the art worlds | Patreon Recover…
- Epis. 357- Seattle artist Debra Broz on her studio routines, love of work as well as successfully navigating "the feel bad machine" that is Instagram
Seattle-based artist and restorer Debra Broz talks about: Living in Seattle, where she moved to from Los Angeles a year and a half prior to our call; how Seattle is full of rule-followers who are also anarchists/anti-capitalists; how she f…
- Zombie Formalism, Debt aesthetics, and AI & Art: New Yorker writer/critic Chris Wiley
Chris Wiley - Artist, New Yorker photography critic, and contributing editor at Frieze - talks about: His fleeing upstate to the Catskills during the pandemic, and what his relative disconnect from the art world and the city has been like…
- Epis: 354- the Art Thief, the remarkable story of art history's most prolific stealer, with author Michael Finkel
Michael Finkel discusses the remarkable story of Stéphane Breitwieser , the subject of his recent book, The Art Thief , including: The genesis of the book project, starting with a three-paragraph article, and eventually turning into a 10+…
- Epis. 351- veteran co-host Deb Klowden Mann joins to discuss Money on the Wall, an epic profile of dealer Larry Gagosian
This special episode features return-guest-but-more-co-host Deb Klowden Mann to discuss the recent New Yorker profile of mega-dealer Larry Gagosian . Deb starts us off by updating us on her closing of her eponymous gallery due to multiple…
- Epis: 349- Narsiso Martinez on his epic story from Oaxaca to California, from picking produce in the fields to becoming a full-time artist
Long Beach-based artist and former produce field worker Narsiso Martinez talks about: Growing up in a small town in Oaxaca, Mexico (Santa Cruz Papalutla), with several brothers and sisters, and a mom and dad who were often on the road for…
- Epis: 347- Alexis Rockman on 'owning' natural history
Connecticut- and New York City-based artist Alexis Rockman talks about: His semi-exodus from Manhattan, where he's lived his whole life, to a fairly rural part of Connecticut called Warren; leaving his Tribeca studio of 33 years and buildi…
- Epis: 345- House-hunting with a Billionaire
Hungarian billionaire Gabriela and artist and architect Andi Schmied talk about: Andi's residencies, across Asia and Europe, as well as the Triangle Arts residency in DUMBO, Brooklyn, where she first connected with her fellow Hungarian, th…
- Art Adivisor Lisa Schiff- a Re-Release of Episode 99 from 2015
Art Advisor Lisa Schiff has been in the news over the last two weeks, because of lawsuits being filed against her by clients who weren't given the artworks they paid for, and Schiff has subsequently filed for bankruptcy. How did this happe…
- Bonus Epis: 344- the Bay Area art scenes, healing out of ancestral trauma, and seeing Philip Guston through the lens of a Jew: artist Alex Nowik
In Bonus Episode 344, San Francisco and northern Virginia-based artist Alex Nowik talks about: The art communities he's been part of in the Bay Area, which have been fruitful for him as a self-taught artist, and how he feels that there are…
- Epis: 343- Flora, Public Art and loving New York even if NY doesn't love you back: Brooklyn-based artist Nancy Blum
Brooklyn-based artist Nancy Blum talks about: Her relationship with Judaism, both growing up and as an adult, where her exploration of healing and self-soothing from generational trauma, which ultimately connects with her art; her alternat…
- In-Between Episode including fresh OLD NEWS
In this in-between (342 and 343) episode, I talk about the new Bonus Episode with Stefanie Kogler-Heimburger (for subscribers only), and recent OLD NEWS including a photo contest winner who used AI to generate his image and subsequently wi…
- Epis. 341: Class Issues- artists and class with Berlin artist Norbert Witzgall
Berlin-based artist and co-curator of the exhibition ' Class Issues: Art Production in and out of Precarity ,' Norbert Witzgall talks about: The term/phenomenon of "Hope Labor," which drives the economy of fine art and is based on the pres…
- The Conversation MIDWAY- Bonus episode announcement, plus a rant on the art services industry
In this Conversation MIDWAY - between epis. 340 and 341 - I talk about the bonus episode for Patreons, featuring Blum-Weinberg-Keinholz-Rottweiler, as well as talk about the art services industry via the Worst Job Posting Ever Created, the…
- Epis. 340: Veteran art handler Bryan Cooke on 50+ years in the art handling business, including several brushes with death
Episode 340- Veteran art handler and preparator Bryan Cooke talks about: Cooke's Crating , the business he started back in 1975, and how it's essentially a service business, one that has grown with the art market, particularly in the last…
- Preview/Teaser for Epis. 339A- Art Can Kill: The Art World's Crooks, Clowns & Connossieurs
In this Teaser for Episode 339A, which is only available to Patreon supporters of the show, we talk about becoming a supporter of the show, read from a bit of the intro to the book Art Can Kill, and talk about the comments from an article…
- Epis. 338: Former pro surfer and current arts writer Jamie Brisick on why success is its own form of failure, and Raymond Pettibon, Paul Chan and Francis Alys, among others
Arts writer and former professional surfer Jamie Brisick talks about: w hat it was like being on the pro surfing tour back in his late teens and early 20s, and how he developed his Plan B career initially as a surfing writer before moving…
- Epis. 337: Art & Politics- how can they co-exist? The Conversation's 14th Virtual Cafe
n the 14th installment of the podcast's Virtual Café, we take as our prompt a Dec. review by NYTimes art critic Holland Cotter about politics in art: About 10 artists in the Virtual Café (including past guests Ianna Frisby of Art Advice an…
- Epis. 336: on The Death of the Artist, a frank conversation with writer and cultural critic William Deresiewicz
Writer and cultural critic William Deresiewicz , author of The Death of the Artist , talks about: His motivations in writing the book, largely motivated by dispelling the myth that this (our current internet/social media era) was the great…
- Epis. 335: Mashed potatoes hurled at Monet, Artists being replaced by AI Robots, a Bad Studio Visit cartoon, and new email etiquette for the Uffizi Gallery, with a very special guest-host
For this latest roundup of OLD NEWS stories, we're joined by a very special guest, to talk about: The MASS MoCA union; the new monument to the Central Park 5; the debate about bringing attention to the climate crisis by throwing food and a…
- Epis. 334: The challenges in green-lighting public art that's actually good- curator and arts administrator Zoë Taleporos
Oakland-based curator and arts administrator Zoë Taleporos talks about: Her straddling independent curating and government-supported public art curating/administrating in her role working for the City of Berkeley; how her curating is more…