Thames & Hudson

Banksy first appeared on the scene in Bristol in the early 90s, working principally as a freestyle artist. According to Kelly Grovier, Banksy experienced a breakthrough moment after being chased by Transport Police while attempting to create a 'late again' tag for commuters. This led him to adopt stencilling as his primary technique, allowing him to produce more elaborate works from the safety of home. Stencilling soon became Banksy signature style, helping him to create impactful pieces quickly, often hidden in plain sight In this episode, Grovier – cultural critic, writer and author of 'How Banksy Saved Art History' – dissects Banksy's engagement with art history and his deep, often hidden commentary on contemporary issues. Grovier goes on to highlight Banksy's ability to reinvigorate classic works, such as the Mona Lisa with an AK-47, and Degas' ballerina with a gas mask. He also emphasizes Banksy's ephemeral style and the temporary nature of his street art, which adds to its impact.

In this episode, artist Olivia Fraser offers a personal glimpse inside the incandescent life and art of her great aunt Eileen Agar, a pioneering figure in Surrealism. At once a painter, collagist, photographer, sculptor, hatmaker and more, Eileen Agar moved fluidly between what she called ‘the different facets of my artistic personality'. Her long and vibrant life spanned Buenos Aires, Paris and London, and was enriched by friendships and relationships with other major cultural figures, including Paul Nash, Lee Miller, Henry Moore, Man Ray, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and Ezra Pound. In this podcast episode, artist Olivia Fraser remembers Agar as an insatiably imaginative figure whose kaleidoscopic studio was its own work of art. Olivia shares how beachcombing was a powerful source of inspiration for Agar, and how themes of chance and coincidence played into her work. Living through two World Wars, Agar retained an incredible resilience and an innate capacity for joy. She had, in Olivia's words, an ability ‘to see the surreal in everything'. Out now, 'A Look at My Life' is a new edition of Eileen Agar's life story in her own words.

In this episode, Wendy Ewald, Susan Meiselas and Laura Wexler - three of the co-authors of 'Collaboration: A Potential History of Photography' – delve behind the scenes of their groundbreaking book, exploring the genesis of the project and its ambitious aim. They offer up an alternative understanding of photography as something that is inherently collaborative, and explore the countless complex relationships between photographer, subject, viewer, camera and more. This wide-ranging conversation spotlights a revolutionary experiment in portraiture by Frederick Douglass, questions the fixed nature of history, and celebrates where ‘the human spirit collaborates with the camera'. 'Collaboration' is also co-authored by Ariella Aïsha Azoulay and Leigh Raiford.

In this episode, art critic Martin Gayford takes us on a breathtaking journey through five centuries of art history in Venice, exploring masterpieces of the Italian Renaissance, Peggy Guggenheim's palazzo, and the kaleidoscopic Venice Biennale. Martin Gayford's book 'Venice: City of Pictures' takes readers on a visual journey through five centuries of Venetian image making, including works by Titian, Canaletto, Ruskin, Turner, Monet, Manet and more. In this episode, Gayford takes us through the canals and palazzos of this ‘uniquely pictorial' place, and its many incarnations throughout history. This episode was presented by Eliza Apperly. Intro and outro audio by Eliza Apperly and Benjamin Nash.

Joanna Moorhead's engrossing new biography 'Surreal Spaces' offers an intimate look at the life and art of her late cousin, the pioneering artist Leonora Carrington. Leonora continually defied the expectations of her family and society, turning away from British upper class life and casting away comfort in the name of freedom, declaring that ‘safety, under any circumstances, is an illusion'. In this episode, we sit down with Joanna to explore the bond she forged with Leonora over five unforgettable years in Mexico City, reflecting on the spaces and locations that infused Leonora's art. The journey begins with Leonora's childhood at Crookhey Hall, a gothic, turreted home whose menacing character influenced her early years. We explore her time in Paris, where she held her own in the cafés of Saint-Germain alongside Picasso, Breton, Duchamp and Dali. The conversation moves on to the St-Martin d'Ardèche farmhouse Leonora shared with Max Ernst, with whom she enjoyed a profound romantic and creative bond, and where the two artists embedded art into the fabric of their home. Joanna describes Leonora's terrifying experiences in a sanatorium in Spain, and finally explores Leonora's Mexico City home, where she was able to live on her own terms, in ‘the most surreal nation on the planet'.

In this special podcast trilogy, archaeologist and Thames & Hudson author David Miles takes us on an immersive tour of the cromlechs and tombs near his home in France, to explore three themes from the past that shape the preoccupations of our present. Each recorded in a different season, episodes Land, Sky, and Home reflect David Miles's deep knowledge of archaeology and the natural world, suffused with birdsong and sounds from the landscapes of the Cévennes. Here in the third episode, Home, David visits the ruins of a Copper Age village to examine how our idea of home emerged.

In this special podcast trilogy, archaeologist and Thames & Hudson author David Miles takes us on an immersive tour of the cromlechs and tombs near his home in France, to explore three themes from the past that shape the preoccupations of our present. Each recorded in a different season, episodes Land, Sky, and Home reflect David Miles's deep knowledge of archaeology and the natural world, suffused with birdsong and sounds from the landscapes of the Cévennes. Here in the second episode, Sky, David encounters a shepherd and a tomb to explore the impact of the heavens on prehistoric social arrangements—and how our modern relationship with the sky needs mending.

In this special podcast trilogy, archaeologist and Thames & Hudson author David Miles takes us on an immersive tour of the cromlechs and tombs near his home in France, to explore three themes from the past that shape the preoccupations of our present. Each recorded in a different season, episodes Land, Sky, and Home reflect David Miles's deep knowledge of archaeology and the natural world, suffused with birdsong and sounds from the landscapes of the Cévennes. Here in the first episode, Land, David investigates a stone circle, and meets a stonemason, to reflect on how prehistoric land clearances relate to anxieties about environmental degradation today.

Art historian Michael Peppiatt explores his friendship with Francis Bacon, lunch with Lucian Freud, and unforgettable encounters with the likes of Sonia Delaunay and more. Peppiatt reflects on more than fifty years of writing about art, bringing to life his friendships with some of the best-known artists of the modern age. Following a life-changing encounter with Francis Bacon in a Soho pub in 1963, Peppiatt found himself suddenly immersed in the lives of extraordinary artists. Here, Peppiatt describes what it was like to interview Sonia Delaunay in Paris – beginning with her ‘complete denunciation of Picasso' – and his near-miss of Giacometti, who passed away before Peppiatt could deliver a letter of introduction from Francis Bacon himself. Peppiatt also shares the experience of assembling his new book 'Artists' Lives', which he likens to planning a dinner party, playing host to some of the biggest personalities in art.

To celebrate the publication of Chloé Catwalk on November 8th, Lou Stoppard and Ayo Ojo explore the fascinating story of one of the world's most infamous female-led brands.

Writers, artists, designers, musicians, filmmakers and more – creatives of all stripes know the perils of creative demons. Whether it's self-doubt, fear of failure or procrastination, the challenges can seem insurmountable. In this episode, Richard Holman, author of 'Creative Demons and How to Slay Them', shares unexpected antidotes and practical tips to help unleash your creativity, including surprising techniques from the likes of Michelangelo, Margaret Atwood, Maggi Hambling and more.

In this episode, Central Saint Martins student Ayo Ojo sits down with ‘Versace Catwalk' author Tim Blanks, offering an inside look at the world of Versace – from the house's opulent collections to its most iconic moments, and the brand's celebrity fans.

In 'The Sister Who Ate Her Brothers', Jen Campbell's collection of terrifying stories, fourteen of the most gruesome fairy tales from around the world are re-told for contemporary readers and restored to their original, grisly versions. Here, Jen reads 'The Kingdoms at the Centre of the Earth', just one of the delightfully grim tales from the book.

In this unmissable episode, writer Eliza Apperly speaks to Harlots, Whores & Hackabouts author Dr. Kate Lister, exploring the complex and compelling history of sex work from medieval London to the Moulin Rouge, ancient Greece to Edo Japan, and right up to the present day. In this wide-ranging and insightful conversation, Kate sheds light on the ‘pleasure quarters' of Renaissance Italy, the wealthy courtesans of ancient Rome, and how royal mistress Nell Gwynne became one of England's most powerful women. Giving long-overdue recognition to the truths of sex work, Kate explores historical and contemporary attempts to regulate the sale of sex, and spotlights landmark moments of revolt by sex workers, including the occupation of a Lyon church in 1975 – widely considered the birth of the sex workers' rights movement.

In this unmissable episode, ‘The Art Museum in Modern Times’ author Charles Saumarez Smith takes us inside the world’s leading galleries, exploring the ‘Disneyfication’ of the art museum, how architecture influences art, the uniquely contemporary role of the museum café, and why COVID might have lasting impacts on curatorial creativity. As Former Director of the National Portrait Gallery and National Gallery, Charles Saumarez Smith is well-versed in the making of a museum. Here, he traces a profound evolution over the last several decades in how we experience art and what we think an art museum should be. Once acting as ‘public schoolrooms’ that prioritised education and linear display, art museums have undergone radical shifts in recent decades, making ‘a switch from coherence to exploration’. From more commercialised Western galleries like the Tate Modern, MoMa and the Guggenheim, to the Japanese museums centering reflection and serenity, Saumarez Smith explores key questions about these extraordinary spaces. How does the architecture of a museum shape its visitors’ experience of art? Can a building ever distract from the collection that it houses? And how will museums emerge from their current existential crisis? This episode was produced and presented by Eliza Apperly and edited by Benjamin Nash.

In this unforgettable episode, writer Eliza Apperly joins in conversation with Pepe Karmel, art history professor and author of ‘Abstract Art: A Global History’, and Kyla McDonald, curator and art historian. Together they embark on a myth-exploding mission through the history of abstraction. Abstract art, Pepe argues, did not unfold as a neat sequence of ‘isms’, as art history textbooks might have us suppose. The truth, he explains, is bolder, messier, and has much more to do with the real-life experiences of artists. This truer history also includes the work of artists who, because of gender and racial bias, have been traditionally overlooked, undervalued and othered. 'Abstract Art: A Global History' shines a light on some of the extraordinary women artists and artists of colour who are finally getting their due. This episode was produced and presented by Eliza Apperly and edited by Benjamin Nash.

In this unmissable episode, writer Eliza Apperly joins in conversation with Andy Friend, author of ‘John Nash: The Landscape of Love and Solace’, and Sara Cooper, Head of Collections and Exhibitions at Towner Eastbourne, to explore the extraordinary life and work of 20th-century painter John Nash. Younger brother of Paul Nash, John’s remarkable life was marked both by great tragedy and by deep, enduring love. This episode offers insight into the traumatic deaths of his mother and young son, his experience of frontline horror in the First World War, his nearly 60-year marriage to Christine Kühlenthal – which allowed for ‘outside loves’ – plus the rich network of artists who were John’s friends and contemporaries, and how John found refuge in his art and in the bucolic British landscape. ‘John Nash: The Landscape of Love and Solace’ by Andy Friend and David Dimbleby is available at: https://thamesandhudson.com/john-nash-the-landscape-of-love-and-solace-9780500022900 The Towner Eastbourne’s retrospective exhibition of the same name will run from 1 May to 26 September 2021. More info can be found at: https://www.townereastbourne.org.uk/exhibition/john-nash-the-landscape-of-love-and-solace/ This episode was produced and presented by Eliza Apperly and edited by Benjamin Nash.

Listen to our new podcast in which writer and broadcaster Louisa Buck interviews Eleanor Nairne, curator of the Barbican’s acclaimed exhibition ‘Lee Krasner: Living Colour’, and Gail Levin, Krasner’s longstanding friend and author of Lee Krasner: A biography.

Jasper Rees speaks to Martin Gayford, art critic for The Spectator, about Bacon, Freud, 'the school of London Painters', and his new book, 'Modernists and Mavericks'. Buy the book: https://bit.ly/2HiYlUO

Authors Fiona Rogers and Max Houghton discuss their new book: a vivid showcase of work by more than thirty of the world’s leading contemporary female documentary photographers. Buy the book: https://bit.ly/2htGeyR

Charles Saumarez Smith, author of 'East London', talks about how this area of the city has changed since he moved there in 1982. Describing his book not as a guide, but as a historical journey from Wapping in the south through Spitalfields and Bethnal Green to Hoxton, Haggerston and Hackney in the north. Buy the book: https://bit.ly/2F7Msei

Building upon his much-praised BBC Radio 4 series '21st Century Mythologies', Peter Conrad examines the enduring place of myth in contemporary culture and society. Buy the book: https://bit.ly/2Hm26F4

DJ Semtex talks about this definitive volume on the essence, experience and energy that is hip-hop and its massive and enduring impact over the last 40 years. Buy the book: https://bit.ly/2vyHlnU

In 1966 the artist Tom Phillips set himself a task: to find a second-hand book for threepence and alter every page, by painting, collage or cut-up techniques, to create an entirely new version. He found his threepenny novel in a junk shop on Peckham Rye, south London. It was A Human Document (1892), an obscure Victorian romance by W. H. Mallock. First published in 1973, A Humument—as Phillips titled his altered book—quickly established itself as a cult classic. Since then, Phillips has been working towards a complete revision of the original A Humument, replacing pages in successive editions. This process is now finished. This final edition presents, for the first time, an entirely revised and complete version of A Humument and brings to a close half a century of artistic endeavor. Tom Phillips writes: “I took a forgotten novel found by chance. I mined, and undermined its text to make it yield alternative stories, erotic incidents and surreal catastrophes, which lurked within its wall of words. I replaced with visual images the text I’d stripped away. A Humument began to tell, amongst other memories, dreams and reflections, the sad story of Bill Toge, one of love’s casualties.” Find out more at www.tomphillips.co.uk