Exploring Art History

Ancient Greek architectural historian Sam Holzman, Princeton University, discusses his personal journey through the world of ancient Greek architecture and the many wonderful experiences it offers him while also presenting him with lots of challenges. This conversation provides you with captivating details of the numerous architectural details hiding in plain sight – from 'bilingual' capitals of Ionic columns, to curiously angled stones to aesthetically compelling restoration efforts – from which we can discover a wealth of information about marvellous ancient buildings and the many dedicated individuals who made them. The conversation also provides behind-the-scenes insights into the creation of Holzman's recent book, Retrospective Columns: Ionic Capitals and Perceptions of the Past in Greek Architecture (PUP), which offers an innovative study of how and why ancient Greek builders sometimes combined older and contemporary carving styles when making capitals. Host: author and filmmaker Howard Burton.* For essays about art by Howard Burton, visit our Exploring Art History blog: https://ideasroadshow.substack.com/.Website: https://ideasroadshow.com/The music in this podcast is licensed from Artlist.

Illustrator, writer and scholar D.B. Dowd, Washington University, discusses fascinating aspects of the historical development of illustration as an integral part of the reading experience, often serving to visualize, enhance, or respond to a text. This richly illustrated conversation begins with an examination of relief prints and woodcuts in ancient China and Japan before moving to printing and platemaking in early modern Europe, followed by an exploration of the role of illustration linked to more recent developments such as the illustrated news, recreational reading, ad-driven consumer culture, advertising, social media and propaganda based on Dowd's recent book Reading Pictures: A History of Illustration.*Host: Howard BurtonChapters:0:00 Introduction 1:36 D.B Dowd's motivations and unique perspective to write a history of illustration19:50 Illustrations in Japan and China, colonialism and mixed moments across history25:29 Caricaturists, Charles Dickens and Robert Seymour38:25 Belle Époque posters, Japanese prints, movable type and xylography42:46 Japan opens up to the West, Japonisme and its effect on French illustrations47:27 Late 19th-century racial stereotyping, Darwin and pseudoscience53:07 Making illustrations more visible while examining the harm that illustration has caused* For essays about art by Howard Burton, visit our Exploring Art History blog: https://ideasroadshow.substack.com/.Website: https://ideasroadshow.com/The music in this podcast is licensed from Artlist.

Renaissance artist Michelangelo was both influenced by, and strongly influenced, other great artists from his contemporary world. In this illustrated video podcast Michelangelo scholar Bill Wallace, Washington University in St. Louis, discusses his research on the artistic relationship between Michelangelo and the great Venetian master Titian and how we can use the power of imagination in combination with art historical knowledge to understand the artists' time. You'll also learn about the different colourists - Pontormo, da Volterra, Venusti - that Michelangelo worked with, his collaboration with Del Piombo, Titian's daughter Lavinia who was a great artist herself, Vasari's divergent descriptions of Michelangelo and Titian in his Lives of Artists and more.Host: Howard BurtonChapters:0:00 Introduction1:30 Michelangelo's The Fall and Titian's The Jealous Husband8:20 Michelangelo's Rebellious Slave and Titian's St. Sebastian9:58 The power of informed imagination to understand an artist's time14:52 Documentary evidence on Michelangelo's encounters with Titian and his art19:37 Michelangelo's use of influences to create radically original art28:05 The effects of the collaboration between Michelangelo and Del Piombo31:40 Colourist collaborators of Michelangelo: Pontormo, da Volterra, Venusti 37:45 Michelangelo's influences on Titian39:44 Vasari's Lives of Artists and Titian's Judith and Holofernes43:22 Titian's daughter and painter Lavinia and attribution46:16 It's too bad Venetians never learned how to draw* For essays about art by Howard Burton, visit our Exploring Art History blog: https://ideasroadshow.substack.com/.Website: https://ideasroadshow.com/The music in this podcast is licensed from Artlist.

Watch a short trailer about the new Exploring Art History video podcast.

In this illustrated video podcast Michelangelo scholar Bill Wallace, Washington University in St. Louis, discusses fascinating and often surprising aspects of how Michelangelo created his masterpieces and the materials he used. Being an internationally recognized authority on Michelangelo, Bill Wallace is able to break down the many stereotypes that exist and provide us with a deep sense of Michelangelo's world and art. Find out about Michelangelo's inexplicable, genius ability to master different techniques and the methods he used to create his drawings, frescoes, sculptures, including his non finito or unfinished works, architectural designs and buildings plus the wide variety of challenges he faced and overcame.Host: author and filmmaker Howard Burton.CHAPTERS:0:00 Introduction1:28 From the Louvre to visits to Italy, Wallace's journey to become a Michelangelo expert4:16 Breaking down stereotypes about Michelangelo7:25 The difficulties of carving marble to explain Michelangelo's unfinished, non finito works 8:58 Unfinished, non finito art by Michelangelo and stereotypes created by scholarly literature12:34 Visiting Michelangelo's quarry in Carrara and the story of his work in the quarries19:23 Drawings made in companionship, his creative process and attribution27:38 Frescoes: from spending a minor time in Ghirlandaio's to painting the Sistine ceiling33:40 The aspiration to lift the labouring process of making sculptures into sublime art 40:21 God's Architect: Michelangelo and the complexity of building Saint Peter's Basilica52:44 The function and misunderstandings about architectural models in the Renaissance1:01:18 Michelangelo's difficulties and courage in dealing with design errors as a professional builder* For essays about art by Howard Burton, visit our Exploring Art History blog: https://ideasroadshow.substack.com/* Website: https://ideasroadshow.com/The music in this video is licensed from Artlist.