18 episodes
What Is a Painting? Jean
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- Arts
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5.0 • 38 Ratings
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What do you see when you look at a painting? You see the subject and the style of the work but also the materials and technologies used to create it and the traces of everything that has happened to it. Professional paintings conservator Jean Dommermuth considers how all of those factors contribute to what a painting is. You don’t need to know anything about art history to enjoy this podcast, but no matter what, you’ll never look at a painting the same way again. You can find images and related materials at jeandommermuth.com/podcast
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Episode 1 - A Three Dimensional Object
What is the physical structure of a painting, and how does that relate to how a painting looks in person? A look at Rembrandt's Aristotle Looking at a Bust of Homer in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
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Episode 2 - A Mystery Novel
What clues about a painting's materials and history can you find just by looking? A look at Botticelli's Birth of Venus in the Uffizi Galleries, Florence.
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Episode 3 - A Surface with Paint on It
How have modern painters explored what a painting can be? A look at the work of Frank Stella.
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Episode 4 - A Vision of Eternity
How did European painters and patrons before about 1400 understand what paintings were and how did that affect how they were made? A look at Early Italian images of the Madonna and Child.
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Episode 5 - Memories of the Forest
How does a tree become a support for a painting, and how does the memory of its life in the forest affect that support? A look at Early Italian panels.
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Episode 6 - Sinew and Stone
Episode 6 - How did painters turn natural materials from animal and mineral sources into the perfect preparation for their panel paintings? A look at Early Italian gesso grounds.
Customer Reviews
You know it’s good when you learn stuff you weren’t even curious about!
I like going to museums, but wouldn’t consider myself an art nut or anything. But these episodes are really interesting—I’m finding myself really engaged in them, & feeling excited for my next museum visit, as I’ll appreciate things more.
A must-listen podcast in the arts
Dommermuth is an expert curator formerly of ArtCare and a Rome Prize winner. She is just brilliant at educating the public. Highly recommended!
Jean goes deep
into what makes a painting physically and says enough about how that relates to meaning and interpretation.