Of course we're talking about the recent theft at the Louvre Museum in Paris, which occurred on October 19th and promptly made news headlines worldwide. Four masked and hooded thieves took more than $100 in jewels before exiting the museum (in broad daylight) and speeding away on motor scooters. Amid the many articles and written reports concerning this theft that appeared just after it happened, one piece that caught out eyes was "The Louvre Heist Was a Colonial Wake-Up Call" (from Hyperallergic, the arts/cultural website). Our guest on Museum Confidential is the author of this piece, Dr. Emiline Smith, a Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Glasgow, Scotland (UK).
Museum Confidential
Ever wonder what really happens after the museum doors close for the night? Museum Confidential, hosted by Jeff Martin, pulls back the velvet rope to explore the hidden stories, unexpected challenges, and fascinating people that make museums tick. This isn't a dry lecture on art history; it's a candid conversation from the heart of the institution itself. Produced by the Philbrook Museum of Art in partnership with Public Radio Tulsa, each episode feels like a private tour, revealing the complex decisions behind exhibitions, the peculiarities of caring for priceless objects, and the ongoing debates about what museums are and who they serve. You'll hear from curators, conservators, registrars, and even security staff-the voices often unheard by the public. The result is a surprisingly human and sometimes humorous look at the effort to preserve and present culture. Tune in every other week for this unique podcast that demystifies the inner workings of these cultural cornerstones, proving there's always more to the story than what's hanging on the wall.
Podcast Episodes
Stuffy Old Museum: Tone 101
How can a small museum in the middle of the country have an impact on par with bigger institutions? How can we fight above our weight class in the arena of ideas? On this special episode we team up with MuseumNext to exp…
A Star is Born (at 86)
Shirley Woodson was born in 1936. She grew up and still lives in Detroit. It's her city, her muse. At 86 the artist recently opened her first ever solo exhibition at her hometown museum, The Detroit Institute of Arts. "S…
Surrealists at War
What role can artists and creatives play in wartime? On this episode we chat with acclaimed author Lesley M.M. Blume about her recent Town & Country article, "The Art of War: How the Surrealists Helped Upend Camouflage a…
The Secret History of the World's Most Erotic Masterpiece
As Women's History Month comes to a close, we explore Gustave Courbet's perennially provocative 1866 work, "L'Origine du Monde (The Origin of the World)" with artist/writer Lilianne Milgrom, author of "L'Origine: The Sec…
Troy Montes-Michie
Troy Montes-Michie was born in El Paso. Border towns are a natural mash-up of cultures, traditions, languages, food, fashion, and nearly everything else. It's no surprise that Montes-Michie turned his focus to collage, c…
Beeple Comes Alive
Mike Winkelmann has been creating digital art for over two decades. He's 40 years old, lives in South Carolina, and has a computer science degree from Purdue. But this isn't a show about Mike Winkelmann. This is a show a…
The Spiritual Side of Art
In the years before World War 2, a group of artists gathered in New Mexico to "carry painting beyond the appearance of the physical world, through new concepts of space, color, light, and design, to imaginative realms th…
Who's Harold Stevenson?
Oklahoma artist Harold Stevenson (1929-2018) created big paintings and lived an even bigger life in New York, Paris, Key West, and the Hamptons, becoming best friends with Andy Warhol along the way. For much of the past…
Live From Aspen: Why Warhol Persists
We haven't done a live audience show in ages. So when the invitation came to travel to Aspen, Colorado for the opening of a new Andy Warhol show at the Aspen Art Museum, we jumped at the opportunity. ANDY WARHOL: LIFETIM…
Mark Mothersbaugh
Mark Mothersbaugh has been a creative force for well over 40 years. From co-founding DEVO to scoring countless films and shows, his impact is undeniable. That body of work includes many collaborations with filmmaker Wes…