David Saunders on Museum Conservation and Lighting

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Getty Art + Ideas
David Saunders on Museum Conservation and Lighting
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Lighting in museums has long been a contentious subject among museum conservators. A gallery with too much light often causes long-term damage to artwork on display, while a gallery with too little light creates a poor experience for visitors. The balance is fine and often subjective. In this episode, David Saunders, an expert in the area of conservation science, discusses the history of and advances in museum conservation and lighting. Currently a Getty Rothschild Fellow, Saunders is former principal specialist at the National Gallery and keeper of conservation, documentation, and research at the British Museum.

Composer John Adams Part 2

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Getty Art + Ideas
Composer John Adams Part 2
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In the second half of a two-part conversation, we hear from John Adams, composer of the Art + Ideas theme music, about key compositions throughout his career as well as upcoming work for the San Francisco Opera. Adams talks about his literary inspirations, how a meeting with Peter Sellars lead him to compose his first opera, and why he doesn’t have an assistant.

Composer John Adams Part 1

Getty Art + Ideas
Getty Art + Ideas
Composer John Adams Part 1
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In the first half of a two-part conversation, we hear from John Adams, composer of the Art + Ideas theme music, about his early days and compositions. Adams talks about his childhood in New England, musical education, experiments in electronic music, and influential move to California.

Mario Vargas Llosa on Culture

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Getty Art + Ideas
Mario Vargas Llosa on Culture
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Peruvian-born writer Mario Vargas Llosa published a book titled “Notes on the Death of Culture: Essays on Spectacle and Society” in which he traces the development and what he sees as the decline of culture in modern society. In this episode, Vargas Llosa discusses this, as well his past work, his influences, and his forthcoming book on classic liberalism. Vargas Llosa is the 2010 Nobel laureate in literature and the co-recipient of the 2017 J. Paul Getty Medal, an award that honors extraordinary contributions to the practice, understanding, and support of the arts.

Nancy Perloff on Russian Futurist Book Art

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Getty Art + Ideas
Nancy Perloff on Russian Futurist Book Art
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Between 1910 and 1915, Russian painters and poets invented an experimental language called “zaum,” which emphasizes sound and is characterized by indeterminacy in meaning. These artists used “zaum” to create handmade artists’ books that are meant to be read, seen, and heard. Nancy Perloff, author of “Explodity: Sound, Image, and Word in Russian Futurist Book Art,” takes us to the archives at the Getty Research Institute to examine two fascinating “zaum” futurist books and to discuss a number of the visual and literary artists of this period.

Visit the online interactive here.

Kenneth Breisch on the Los Angeles Central Library

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Getty Art + Ideas
Kenneth Breisch on the Los Angeles Central Library
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The Central Library in downtown Los Angeles is an iconic architectural landmark with high open ceilings, remarkable murals, and a striking façade. Kenneth Breisch, author of “The Los Angeles Central Library: Building an Architectural Icon, 1872–1933,” discusses the extensive development of the library over the course of several decades, from its founding as a private library association to the construction and design of the beloved building that still stands today. Breisch is associate professor in the School of Architecture at the University of Southern California.

Anne Woollett on “Rembrandt Laughing”

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Getty Art + Ideas
Anne Woollett on "Rembrandt Laughing"
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In 2007 an English family decided to sell a small painting in their collection: an image of a man laughing with a label featuring the name Rembrandt. The work was initially attributed to a contemporary of Rembrandt, but scholarly analysis and scientific testing determined that it was indeed a Rembrandt. We visit the painting in the Getty Museum’s galleries with Anne Woollett, curator of paintings at the Getty, who reveals the mystery and magic behind this endearing self-portrait by one of the most eminent painters of the Dutch Golden Age.

David Brafman on Alchemy

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Getty Art + Ideas
David Brafman on Alchemy
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Now recognized as the ancestor of modern chemistry, alchemy is a mysterious and often misunderstood blend of science, philosophy, and spirituality. Alchemists were notorious for making artificial gold, but their impact extended far beyond their desire for noble metals. David Brafman, associate curator of rare books and curator of “The Art of Alchemy” at the Getty Research Institute, discusses how this medieval magic has had an enduring influence on scientific and artistic culture.

Sunil Khilnani on India’s History in Fifty Lives

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Getty Art + Ideas
Sunil Khilnani on India’s History in Fifty Lives
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“India’s history is a curiously unpeopled place. As usually told it has dynasties, epochs, religions, and castes—but not that many individuals,” Sunil Khilnani writes in his book “Incarnations: India in Fifty Lives.” In “Incarnations,” also released as a BBC radio series and podcast, Khilnani explores how the lives of fifty Indians across 2,500 years have shaped India’s history as we know it. We hear from Khilnani about a few of these figures, including the Buddha, poet Mirabai, and filmmaker Satyajit Ray. Khilnani is author of “The Idea of India” and professor of politics and director of the India Institute at King’s College, London.

Scott Allan on Manet’s “Jeanne (Spring)”

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Getty Art + Ideas
Scott Allan on Manet’s "Jeanne (Spring)"
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At the Salon of 1882, just one year before his death, Édouard Manet exhibited a painting depicting the actress and model Jeanne Demarsy. This portrait of a chic young woman holding a parasol against a background of lush foliage is viewed as a testament to Manet’s command of color and brushwork, and was one of the few resounding public and critical successes of his career. Scott Allan, associate curator of paintings at the J. Paul Getty Museum, takes us to the Getty’s galleries where the painting is on view and explores the significance of this extraordinary work.