Explore every episode of the podcast Pictorial

For Pictorial's diamond jubilee, we talk about the wide-ranging portfolio of architect and designer Liz Diller.

The fascinating biography and beautiful textiles of mid-century icon Ruth Adler Schnee.

Betty explains how to prove a painting was created by Rubens (and how to prove a painting was _not_ created by Peter Doig).

Let's talk about zines! What are they? Where did they come from? Where did they go? How hard is it to make your own? (this is foreshadowing)

Museums typically preserve and restore art using the best technology available to them, but what about when decay is part of the piece?

Local contemporary art enthusiasts learn about extremely contemporary art.

We are distressed. (Part 2 of 2)

We are concerned. (Part 1 of 2)

An art historian recently discovered that a Mondrian painting has been hung upside down for decades. How does something like that happen, and what made them realize the mistake? Plus: Quinn tries to guess which way abstract paintings are supposed to be oriented.

After Lynn Goldsmith took photos of Prince in 1981, she gave Andy Warhol permission to make a silkscreen illustration. However, she had no idea that he made a series of illustrations, some of which have been licensed for thousands of dollars. Now she has a case in front of the Supreme Court that may shape the future of copyright.

Presidential portraits! Why are so many so boring and a few actually quite interesting? How does Pikachu fit in to this? Let's find out.

Well, there was a fun TikTok trend about everyone's favorite art pieces, but then the sound got taken down and all the videos are unavailable now, so you're going to have to take our word for it. I mean it's fine, we describe the videos and we link to all the art, but still. Rude.

Betty and Quinn return after a brief hiatus to discuss the life and work of JMW Turner... the father of Modernism?

Quinn walks Betty through the life, work, and hot takes of the iconic painter Keith Haring.

Betty walks Quinn through select pavilions and artworks at the 2022 Venice Biennale. This art show has everything: sculptures, paintings, deeply moving artist statements, a paper maze, dreams made out of milk(?)

A brief overview of Venice's biannual international art exhibition, but primarily the most scandalous controversies in its 127 year history.

Augusta Savage was a sculptor, teacher, and part of the Harlem Renaissance. While she was relatively unknown when she passed away, today she's been rediscovered and recognized for her work and for her mentorship to the next generation of artists.

What is the earliest art made by humans? Depends on what you mean by "earliest," "art," and "humans."

We discuss the Netflix mini-series _This Is A Robbery_, a documentary about the theft of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 1990. Featured topics include mobsters, Rembrandt's only seascape, and how easy it was to commit crimes in 1990.

After the recent vandalism Anna Leporskaya’s Three Figures, we decided to take a look at some other remarkable (and hilarious) museum incidents.

Thousands of years ago, the first emperor of China dictated the construction of thousands of life-sized terracotta soldiers in a hidden mausoleum. Fifty years ago, we found them.

Saturn Devouring His Son is a dark, disturbing painting made by the Spanish artist Francisco Goya, depicting horrific violence, never intended for the public eye. And it's a really funny meme.

Betty uses her nearly 10 years of gallery guide experience to teach Quinn strategies for how to engage with art without any contextual information; Quinn interprets some paintings through her experience of of horror movies, Americana, and delicious picnic food.

This episode we're talking about the contemporary artist Sarah Hatton. Her work focuses on reclaiming materials, the natural world, and investigating questions about human nature. Also, she's Canadian, so Betty's having a great week.

For our first episode of 2022, Betty is walking Quinn through a brief history of concert posters: the good, the bad, and the psychedelic.

In blatant exploitation of the responsibility of hosting our 50th episode, Quinn walks Betty through musicals about famous visual artists.

Betty tells Quinn all about the Florida Highwaymen, a group of African American landscape artists who sold paintings door-to-door and out of the trunks of their cars starting in the 1950s.

In October, the internet came together to laugh about an absurd-sounding art story: a Danish artist had pocketed $84,000 given to him by a museum and returned blank canvasses titled "Take the Money and Run." Today we discuss the Kunsten Museum, Jens Haaning, and what he's trying to do with this art piece.

We finish up our religious art mini-series with a look at the temples and sculptures of Hindu art!

In part three of our religious art mini-series, Quinn and Betty talk about the hamsa, Hiddur Mitzvah, and the paintings of Marc Chagall.

Betty and Quinn look at the art of the biggest religion in the world, Christianity. They cover pieces from catacomb paintings in the fourth century, to the iconic art of Michelangelo, to the surrealist interpretations of Salvador Dalí.

Quinn and Betty kick off a four-part mini-series on major religious art traditions with a peek into the history of Islamic art.

What do the Virgin Mary and the Blue Man Group have in common? Their association with ultramarine blue and its high tech sibling, International Klein Blue.

During World War II, hundreds of art experts and historians pushed for some protection and rescue of millions of art pieces and artifacts. In response, the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives program was created. This week Quinn breaks down some of the most interesting stories and people from the book "The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History."

What's the relationship between a 19th century occult movement and the development of abstract art? A lot more than you might think!

Quinn and Betty return to Cyberfeminism by examining the experimental art pieces ALL NEW GEN, Cyberflesh Girlmonster, and Brandon.

In our first episode about Cyberfeminism, Quinn walks Betty through the history and principles behind this 90s art movement. Betty reveals her cyborg dreams.

Betty shares the style and history of lowbrow art, otherwise known as pop surrealism. They examine a unique version of Katy Perry, and Quinn has a cynical take on the underground-to-art-museum cycle.

How does a priceless piece of Nigerian art disappear, only to be found decades later in a London apartment? Honestly, we're still not quite sure, but Ben Enwonwu and his masterpiece portrait Tutu are fun to talk about anyway.

After bringing up his work in a few previous episodes, we finally dive into the Chinese contemporary artist Song Dong. Betty walks Quinn through several of his major pieces, including Waste Not and Communal Courtyard.

This week we're diving into the history of Playbill design, with diversions along the way into Pantone codes, gradients, and minimalist graphic design.

Not only does Quinn have no idea what NFTs are, she doesn't understand blockchain or cryptocurrency... at all. Today Betty's giving them a crash course on what Non-Fungible Tokens are, and what they have to do with someone setting a Banksy painting on fire and then selling it for $380,000.

Quinn found a book about internet art published in 2004, and she's really excited about it. Today we're talking about what defined the early net.art movement, and artists like jodi.org and Olia Lialina who pushed the boundaries of what online art could be in 1995.

This week, we're taking one step deeper into the study of abstract art by examining Piet Mondrian. What historical events, religious beliefs, and settings influenced him to develop his famous style of primary color blocks and black lines?