American Art Online Audio

a catalogue of audio recordings of lectures and conversations with artists, scholars and others

with content focusing on representational art listed by source name

and presented free of charge

 

Marymount Manhattan College

David Gilbert, a professor of communications at Marymount Manhattan College, worked with his students in 2005 to produce unofficial audio guides for art exhibited at MoMA. The audio guides are available as podcasts and they may be played on iPods while touring the museum. RocketBoom features a June 8, 2005 video interview with Dr. Gilbert and two of his students, explaining the project. BBC News television reported on it June 2, 2005 and Randy Kennedy of the New York Times also reported on the audio guides in a May 28, 2005 article titled "With Irreverence and an iPod, Recreating the Museum Tour." Audio guide segments include Max Beckmann's Family Picture, Tom Wesselmann's Still Life Number 30, Robert Rauschenberg's Bed, plus others.
 
 

Metropolitan Museum of Art

An audio tour of the exhibition John Baldessari: Pure Beauty (11/15/10), part of the Museum's Audio Guide Program, was made available for visitors to download onto their own MP3 players, at no charge, from the Museum's website and from iTunes. The John Baldessari: Pure Beauty audio program is introduced by the Museum's Director, Thomas P. Campbell, and narrated by Marla Prather. It features a new interview with Baldessari -- recorded specifically for the Metropolitan's presentation of this exhibition -- as well as commentary from his students Barbara Bloom, James Casebere, and David Salle.

 

Millard Sheets Center for the Arts

A 31 track podcast tour is provided by Millard Sheets Center for the Arts in the the Millard Sheets Gallery website. The Millard Sheets Gallery began as the Fine Arts Program of the L.A. County Fair -- art exhibitions have been an integral part of the Fair since its founding in 1922. Each year, the exhibits produced for the Fair have featured artists from not only Los Angeles, but also California, the nation, and throughout the world, and have presented contemporary as well as historical art in a variety of styles and media. In 1998, the Millard Sheets Gallery was incorporated as a nonprofit organization with the purpose of helping to fill a gap in the cultural opportunities available for Pomona-area residents. Since then, the Gallery's vision is to become a year-round arts venue, offering the people of Southern California an opportunity to experience diverse and progressive art exhibitions combined with lively educational programs, with the goal of encouraging new generations of art enthusiasts.

 

Mississippi Museum of Art

For its 2008 exhibition This Mississippi Story, the Mississippi Museum of Art offers a 12-part audio guide tour for visitors that may be listened to on a Web page or downloaded before visiting the Museum. The tour may be played on an iPod or other portable device at the Museum. The audio tour is created by Acoustiguide. The Museum says of the exhibition: "This Mississippi Story exhibition portrays the history and culture of Mississippi through art, reflecting the national and international context of that story as well." The Museum says about the audio tours: "These tours give you in-depth, background information on the works of art you will see in the Museum's exhibitions, as well as information on the artists who created the work, the time period in which the art was made, and the broader context of life in that particular time period."(Link found expired as of 8/13/09 audit. Source site may contain this content via a revised URL)
 
 

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

Mcast Audio provides audio commentary for some of the exhibitions on view at the museum. Listen to curators and other experts talk about the exhibitions and the works included in them. For The Modern West: American Landscapes, 1890 - 1950, Emily Ballew Neff, MFAH curator of American painting and sculpture and curator of The Modern West exhibition, Barry Lopez, nature writer and author of one of the essays in the catalogue accompanying the exhibition, and Richard Francaviglia, historian, geographer, and professor at the Center for Greater Southwestern Studies and the History of Cartography at the University of Texas at Arlington, talk about the exhibition and some of the works in the show.

 

Museum of Fine Arts St. Petersburg, FL

The Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg provides podcasts on its web site which can be downloaded by viewers. Examples are: Herb Snitzer: Celebrating Fifty Years in Photography, including talks with Chief Curator Jennifer Hardin; Compelling Visions: Florida Collects Folk Art presented by Chief Curator Jennifer Hardin

Museum of Indian Arts & Culture

The Museum of Indian Arts & Culture provides podcasts of lectures. Some lectures feature art including;

 

Museum of Modern Art, New York

MoMA offers the online service MoMAudio, featuring Modern Voices, "commentaries by dozens of curators, artists, critics, and conservators who share their perspectives on select artworks in the Museum's collection," Several covered artworks are by American artists. Web site visitors can download the complete Modern Voices audio program for use with a portable MP3 player. The museum also offers Modern Kids which "offers four fun ways for children to explore works of art in the Museum's collection," and Special Exhibitions "providing audio commentary for many special exhibitions on view at the Museum." MoMA Audio is a collaboration between The Museum of Modern Art and Acoustiguide, Inc. 

 

MuseumPods the Social Media Network

MuseumPods offers "...Candid conversations with museum staff regarding technology, art, and exhibitions." Click here to access a Museum Podcast Directory with dozens of podcasts. (8/13/09 advanced search failed to locate content on source's site)

 

Nasher Museum of Art

The Barkley L. Hendricks page from the Nasher Museum of Art contains links to a video and podcast for the exhibition. In the podcast Curator of Contemporary Art Trevor Schoonmaker, artist Barkley L. Hendricks and other discuss "Barkley Hendricks: Birth of the Cool."

 

National Gallery of Art

The National Gallery of Art offers on its web site audio and video podcasts including:

the audio tour "The Director's Tour" by Director Earl A. Powell III. (Link found expired as of 4/24/09 audit. Source site may contain this content via a revised URL)
 
O'Keeffe on Paper. Barbara Buhler Lynes, co-curator of the exhibition, author of Georgia O'Keeffe: Catalogue Raisonné, curator of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe, and Emily Fisher Landau Director of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum Research Center, discuss new insights on the stunning watercolors, charcoals, and pastels presented in the exhibition of O'Keeffe's most innovative works on paper. Aired May 6, 2000. (description courtesy NGA)
 
Carleton Watkins: The Art of Perception. Sarah Greenough, curator of photographs, talks about works by celebrated nineteenth-century photographer Carleton Watkins, on view in the first major exhibition of Watkin's work in 20 years. Aired March 11, 2000. (description courtesy NGA)
 
Martin Johnson Heade, Part Two. Franklin Kelly, curator of British and American painting, continues the discussion of the exhibition, Martin Johnson Heade. Aired March 4, 2000. (description courtesy NGA)
 
Martin Johnson Heade, Part One. Franklin Kelly, curator of British and American painting, presents an overview of the work of Martin Johnson Heade, one of the most innovative and creative artists of the nineteenth century. Aired February 26, 2000. (description courtesy NGA)
 
Jasper Johns: An Allegory of Painting, 1955­1965, press event opening remarks from Earl A. Powell III and Jeffrey Weiss
 

The National Gallery of Art's audio podcasts page contains podcasts concerning collecting American art with titles including:

 

National Public Radio

National Public Radio provides archives of its radio program series. Many of the audio shows are accompanied by images of artwork being discussed. Examples are:

William Christenberry, from NPR's Studio 360, September 1, 2006
 
'Masters of American Comics': A History of the Funnies from Fresh Air, WHYY, January 3, 2006
 
Tim Hawkinson: Creating Art with Moving Parts from All Things Considered, August 16, 2005
 
The Story Behind American Gothic from Morning Edition, July 12, 2005
 
Kim Novak: Portrait of a Stipple Artist from All Things Considered, July 4, 2005
 
Gilbert Stuart: Views of George Washington by Linda Wertheimer, from Weekend Edition, May 14, 2005; with link also to "Preserving George Washington's Portrait" (March 16, 2001)
 
Photo Op: John Szarkowski's Art Vision from Day to Day, February 10, 2005
 
National Geographic Portraits in Focus by Alex Chadwick, from Day to Day, November 14, 2004
 
View of New York: Painter Red Grooms from Fresh Air, August 2, 2004
 
Painting Clinton's White House Portrait from Morning Edition, June 14, 2004
 
Piecing Together Joseph Cornell from All Things Considered, November 26, 2003
 
The Photos of Edward Weston from Morning Edition, August 8, 2003
 
The Quilts of Gee's Bend from NPR including a February 4, 2003 15 minute audio recording
 
When Insiders Define Outsiders from Studio 360, January 2003. Kurt Andersen discusses the transformation of art and the development of outsider art.
 
Kinkade Kitsch from Studio 360, August, 2002. Kurt Andersen discusses Thomas Kinkade.
 
Diane Arbus' Identical Twins: Listen to Madeleine Brand's report.
 
Margaret Bourke-White's Photography of Design, February 26, 2003 with links also to "Susan Stamberg reports on a Margaret Bourke-White retrospective exhibit in New York" (February 28, 1998) and "Stamberg interviews Vicki Goldberg, author of Margaret Bourke-White, A Biography" (June 16, 1986)
 
American Gothic, Present at the Creation from Morning Edition, November 18, 2002 with links also to "Centennial of Grant Wood's Birth" (June 6, 1991) and "an interview with James Dennis, author of Grant Wood: A Study in American Art and Culture". (February 13, 1976)
 
Rose Bowl Floats from Weekend Edition, Saturday, December 29, 2001. Susan Stamberg talks with Rose Bowl float designer Raul Rodriguez about his many creations.
 
Black Religious Art from All Things Considered, April 13, 2001. On this Good Friday, Commentator Robert Franklin remarks on the growing role of art in African-American churches.
 
Outsider Art from Morning Edition, February 9, 2001. David D'arcy reports on "outsider art" -- works produced by self-taught artists. The work is known for its unconventional materials as well as for the unusual biographies of some of its creators.

 

Nebraska Public Television / Museum of Nebraska Art

Nebraska Public Television archives MONA Moments on Nebraska Public Radio, written and narrated by Ron Roth, Director of the Museum of Nebraska Art. In the site's search box, enter "mona moments" and choose "NET Websites" to access 137 episodes as of November 2008. The NPTV web site says that Moments "...are designed to "educate and inform NPR listeners on Nebraska's visual art heritage, and to promote MONA." Each Moment, with 2 to 7 minutes of audio, has a separate web page containing a link to enable the viewer to replay the audio broadcast, a complete transcript of the audio, plus a thumbnail image of the art subject being covered to provide context. The thumbnail image is linked to a larger image with a caption on a separate page. The audio version of each Moment as presented on NPR is delivered on the Web in RealOne Player .ram file format. (8/13/09 advanced search failed to locate content on source's site)
 
 

New Mexico Museum of Art

In October-November, 2006, Timothy Rodgers, Ph.D., Chief Curator New Mexico Museum of Art, presented in conjunction with the exhibition: Collecting Modernism: European Modernism the the Munson Williams-Proctor Art Museum a series of lectures within its page for audio/video, including "A New Deck of Cards: the Armory Show."

 

Odeo.com

Man Ray: Surrealist Meets Architect Published on Oct 28, 2006 in Arts. Odeo says: "Who contributes more to the public perception of a building, the architect or the photographer? For Harwell Hamilton Harris, a California architect in the 1930s and 40s, the photographer who helped make Harrisâs buildings famous was one of the 20th centuryâs most celebrated Surrealists--Man Ray. Man Ray embraced the new ideas of art and culture, he was one of the leading spirits of DADA and Surrealism and the only American artist to play a prominent role in the launching of these two influential movements. He had never photographed architecture when Harris commissioned him to photograph three of Harris' most interesting houses. Man Rayâs architectural photos were unlike anything Harris had ever seen--and Man Ray never photographed architecture again. We, who are interested in architecture and art, are the better for Man Rayâs short, but memorable side trip into architecture, when two great artists--one a mild-mannered modernist, and one a Dada Surrealist--met on sunny hillsides in Los Angeles and Berkeley and created works of art, in architecture and photography. For more information about Man Ray and his art, read Ingrid Schaffner's book, The Essential Man Ray (2003,The Wonderland Press, Harry. N. Abrams, publishers). To see Man Ray's work online, visit www.manraytrust.com. And see what's surreal at www.tedwells.com. Photograph of the Weston Havens House, Architect: Harwell Hamilton Harris; Photo by Man Ray, Copyright Man Ray Trust"
 
 

Orange County Museum of Art

The Orange County Museum of Art is enabling individuals to use iPods and other MP3 players to better appreciate its exhibitions. For the Museum's Villa America exhibit (June 4 - October 2, 2005), the OCMA web site contained a 25-part audio tour of the exhibit which could be be downloaded by individuals before they visited the exhibit. The museum also made iPods available onsite for the use of visitors. Villa America explores the evolution of American art through masterpieces of America's foremost artists of the first half of the 20th century. The exhibition begins with a look at key American modernists working in Europe and New York during the first quarter of the century. In these early years, artists such as Stuart Davis, Charles Demuth, Arthur Dove, Marsden Hartley, Gerald Murphy and Georgia O'Keeffe, to name just a few, were reshaping American art. (8/13/09 advanced search failed to locate content on source's site)
 
Download the .m4a the audio tour module for Grant Wood's Return from Bohemia from Resource Library's article Villa America: American Moderns, 1900­1950
 
Through grants from the Henry Luce Foundation and the Getty Foundation the museum is placing its permanent collection online in a creative manner. A feature of the Collection Online is a section named "highlighted artists." As of March 2007 "highlighted artists" includes representational artists William Wendt, Ed Ruscha and Helen Lundeberg. For each artist there are sections including a brief biography, images of artworks, photo archives, audio and video clips, quotes and readings about the artist, and resources consisting of links to other websites. (Link found expired as of 8/13/09 audit. Source site may contain this content via a revised URL)
 
 
 

Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum

The museum's first podcast was an overview of Granville Bruce: Old Texas on exhibit July 30 through October 30, 2005. It was produced by Buster Ratliff, PPHM Operations Coordinator, and includes a gallery talk by PPHM Curator of Art, Michael Grauer. Personal impressions of the exhibit are expressed by Shianne McCracken and Ryan Brantley, both students at West Texas A&M University and employees of the museum. See an article and an essay on the exhibit in Resource Library, a publication of TFAO.
 
Organized by the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, Granville Bruce consists of 70 oils, watercolors, and drawings, most of which are borrowed from the artist's family.
 
The Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum features podcasts regularly to its website through its Exhibits (Link found expired as of 4/24/09 audit. Source site may contain this content via a revised URL)page. As of early 2006 podcasts were not archived online.
 
 

Parrish Art Museum

The Parrish Art Museum provides on its Web site a page titled "Audio Guides." As of 12/6/10 the audio gudies included: WLIU Teen Tours through the Arts: Fairfield Porter, March 2009; WLIU Teen Tours through the Arts: William Merritt Chase, February 2009.
 
 

Portland Museum of Art

The Portland Museum of Art offers podcasts of Museum programs and exhibitions: For 2008 podcasts included:
 
American Menagerie: The Teddy Bear (Wed, 20 Aug 2008)
 
American Menagerie: Favorite Works II (Wed, 20 Aug 2008)
 
American Menagerie: Favorite Works (Wed, 20 Aug 2008)
 
American Menagerie: Theme of Exhibition (Wed, 20 Aug 2008)
 
Georgia O'Keeffe: Idea for the Exhibition (Wed, 02 Jul 2008). Listen to Curator Susan Danly talk about how she came up with the idea for the exhibition Georgia O'Keeffe and the Camera: The Art of Identity.
 
Georgia O'Keeffe: Overview (Wed, 02 Jul 2008). Listen to Curator Susan Danly give an overview of the exhibition Georgia O'Keeffe and the Camera: The Art of Identity.
George Bellows:Prayer Meeting, First Stone (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: Preaching (Billy Sunday) (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: Punchinello in the House of Death (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: A Knock Down (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: Matinicus (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: Night at Petitpas (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: Splinter Beach (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: The Strugglers (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: Girl Sewing (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
George Bellows: The Law Is Too Slow (Tue, 15 Apr 2008)
 
Associate Curator Jessica Routhier: Night at Petitpa's by George Bellows (Thu, 10 Apr 2008)
 
Associate Curator Jessica Routhier: A Knock Down by George Bellows (Thu, 10 Apr 2008)
 
Associate Curator Jessica Routhier: Prayer Meeting by George Bellows (Thu, 10 Apr 2008)
 
In a 8/13/09 TFAO audit, the above content was not available on the podcasts page. The page included 2009 podcasts and two December, 2008 podcasts.
 


PBS

Artist Romare Bearden drew on his interests in religious ritual and classic literature to create beyond what the camera could capture in his depictions of urban African-American life in the 20th century. Jeffrey Brown reviews the artistic achievements of Bearden, which are celebrated in an exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. This 8-minute audio clip is from a 1988 NewsHour with Jim Lehrer segment. Another 10-minute NewsHour segment includes a 1986 Charlayne Hunter-Gault interview with Romare Bearden.
 
Reclusive janitor by day, visionary artist by night, outsider artist Henry Darger moved through life virtually unnoticed. But after his death, a treasure trove was discovered in his one-room Chicago apartment: a staggering 15,000-page novel and hundreds of illustrations that continue to inspire artists around the world. Listeners take an interactive audio tour through several of Henry Darger's works, led by Brooke Davis Anderson, director and curator of the Contemporary Center at the American Folk Art Museum. Ms. Anderson is responsible for the care and cultivation of the contemporary objects by self-taught artists in the permanent collection as well as new acquisitions and exhibitions. She is also involved with programming and collaborative initiatives of The Contemporary Center and its special division, The Henry Darger Study Center.

 

P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center / Museum of Modern Art

 
MOMA recently received from the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture a set of CD-Rs containing artists' lectures digitized from analog recordings of Skowhegan's artist faculty. The lectures were originally intended for use by the School's students and other artists. Through a grant from the Henry Luce Foundation the lectures were digitized and placed on DR-Rs, then disseminated to institutions including MOMA, where they are available to researchers. WPS1 is in the process of obtaining permissions from the artists to have selected archived lectures broadcast on the Web. WPS1 is also reviewing the technical quality of the recordings to determine if they are of sufficient quality for broadcasting.

 

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