Art Almanac is now sharing ‘Art Talk’ online, an extension of our new platforms ‘Virtual Galleries’ and the ‘Stockroom’, promoting artists and galleries. ‘Art Talk’ is comprised of a selection of videos and podcasts on Australian art, all in one place for our readers to enjoy. The first three content creators we are tuning into put out new material regularly, whereas those at the tail end of this round-up are examples of excellent contemporary bodies of work that survey creative life in Australia.
‘Pine Copper Lime’ is a podcast based in Sydney with an international scope focusing on printmakers and lead by Miranda K. Metcalf, a former Seattle gallerist. Adding to a growing catalogue of up to 40 conversations and more to come (she’s aiming to publish weekly now) that enmesh personal histories, art and process, Metcalf recently had a chat to Australian artists Omar Bin Musa, Rona Green and Dr Tony Curran.
‘Exhibition – with Richard Morecroft’ is a new Youtube channel by the highly regarded presenter and arts enthusiast. It’s a new platform for Morecroft, who has previously been sharing his interviews on social media and mediating discussions at special art events. Some recent uploads, of about half an hour each, include Liz Priestly, Luke Sciberras, James Drinkwater, Chris O’Doherty and Michelle Hungerford, speaking from their studios about recent or upcoming shows.
Courtesy Maria Stoljar
Maria Stoljar’s ‘Talking with Painters’ has a straightforward and engaging mandate to talk about painting from the horse’s mouth. Stoljar trained at Julian Ashton Art School and Waverley Woollahra Art School, and she’s almost reached 100 episodes – so there’s plenty to explore from the likes of artists Ann Thompson, Abdul Abdullah, Louise Hearman, David Griggs, curator Lisa Slade and thematic podcasts looking at the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ Wynne or Sulman prizes. There’s a handful of other helpful links on Stoljar’s page such as images and videos.
Now to content, we can consider a contemporary time capsule; Tai Snaith’s podcast was created over three years and titled ‘A World of One’s Own’. It was also a project with material outcomes and an exhibition that stemmed from conversations with artists Megan Cope, Sanné Mestrom, Stanislava Pinchuk and Esther Stewart, to name a few. The premise of each chat is, as the 1929 essay by author Virginia Woolf articulated, to allow space for ideas to seed and a sense of self.
Ilona Nelson’s photography project ‘This Wild Song’ saw her meet with significant Australian female artists, to create portraits in which the artist becomes a part of their own artwork. To parallel this, she also created a series of ten conversations with artists such as Freya Jobbins, Michelle Hamer and Wanda Gillespie – to address the practicalities and realities of being a professional artist, and the ‘business’ of art.
Portrait of Australian artist Michelle Hamer, by Ilona Nelson for This Wild Song
Honor Eastly gets real about finances in ‘Starving Artist’. Given the massive impact the pandemic has sparked from events being cancelled to jobs lost and uncertainty abounding, it is a relevant series of 13 episodes to revisit. Eastly invites guests such as artist Frances Cannon, author Bri Lee and ethical clothing designer Abbey Rich to discuss how they make money, feelings such as anxiety and whether there’s a confluence between success and income.
‘Fieldwork’ by academic and artist Drew Pettifer, was a contemporary art podcast recorded in Melbourne. There are 11 rich and nuanced exchanges between Pettifer and leading Australian artists such as William Yang, Deborah Kelly, Yhonnie Scarce. All these conversations are set in the context of themes specific to the artist’s practice, such as otherness and Indigenous trauma. While the podcast is two years old, it’s clear that many of the subjects canvassed are ongoing issues that require respect and attention now and going forward.
pinecopperlime.co
talkingwithpainters.com
taisnaith.com/podcast
thiswildsong.com.au
starvingartistpodcast.com
fieldworkpodcast.com.au
