Arts Talk welcomes Shantell Martin, celebrated visual artist, performer, songwriter, choreographer, teacher, philosopher, and member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire to reflect upon the magic of lines, a distinctive figure in her work, and to share how collaboration functions as central to her expansive artistic practice. The first Artist in Residence at USC Viterbi’s Information Sciences Institute (ISI), Martin discusses the importance of bringing artists together with engineers and scientists to explore the generative intellectual and practical intersections of these fields. She shares how her current work with USC’s ISI is harnessing the creative possibilities of AI in a new era of learning models to imagine alternative modes of engaging with art and developing adaptable and practical frameworks for preserving artistic legacies that prioritize estate planning and ownership. Recognized internationally for her artistic and charitable contributions, Martin has collaborated with key artists, institutions and brands, including Kendrick Lamar, Kelly Wearstler, the Boston Ballet, the New York City Ballet, Tiffany & Co., Adidas and Puma, and her work has been exhibited at the Whitney Museum, Denver Art Museum, Brooklyn Museum, The Museum of the Moving Image, The Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts, New Britain Museum of American Art, and MoMA, among many others.

Arts Talk is produced by Perry B. Johnson with sound design, editing and mixing by Matteah Baim. Special thanks to Suzanne Felson for her generous support of the podcast.

Music Credits

"Creativity," Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock

"I Stand You Stand" by Shantell Martin

"Flowing Spiritual" by Shantell Martin

"Picking Up" by Shantell Martin

"Present Word #17 – 2024 July 8-06" by Shantell Martin

“Forget" by Shantell Martin

“Ourselves" by Shantell Martin

“Snowglobe" by Shantell Martin

KOOL FM 94.5 London Pirate Radio (Early 90s)

"Inner City Life" by Goldie

"Sum of It All” by Shantell Martin

Arts Talk is hosted by Josh Kun, USC Vice Provost for the Arts and USC Annenberg Professor and Chair in Cross Cultural Communication at the University of Southern California. Arts Talk is produced by Perry B. Johnson, with sound design, editing and mixing by Matteah Baim. 

Special thanks to Suzanne Felson for her generous support of the podcast.

artsnow.usc.edu

“Theater is an act of radical mediation that can create spaces where people can hear each other.” In episode 4, we are joined by Bryan Doerries, writer, translator, and Artistic Director of Theater of War Productions (@theaterofwar), a social impact company that reimagines live theater and community-specific productions as an interactive means for fostering constructive, global conversations that take up the pressing issues confronting our ever-polarized cultural and political moment. Enlisting acclaimed actors in the performance of ancient Greek plays and public readings of contemporary long-form journalism, Theater of War tackles public health and social issues through engaged productions that prioritize audience reactions and discussions as central to the main event. In this episode, Doerries shares how his own experience navigating personal loss brought him back to ancient Greek tragedies as a key source for learning how to navigate trauma, offering an affective roadmap for how to sit in and with difference and discomfort by laying bare our shared vulnerabilities and asking us to confront the preconceptions that too often inhibit our ability to find shared humanity in individuals unlike ourselves. 

Music Credits

"Creativity," Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock

"Music for 18 Musicians: Section II," Steve Reich

"Electric Counterpoint," Steve Reich

"Four Organs," Steve Reich

"The Desert Music: Third Movement, Pt. 1 (Slow)," Steve Reich

"Octet," Steve Reich

Arts Talk is hosted by Josh Kun, USC Vice Provost for the Arts and USC Annenberg Professor and Chair in Cross Cultural Communication at the University of Southern California. Arts Talk is produced by Perry B. Johnson, with sound design, editing and mixing by Matteah Baim. 

Special thanks to Suzanne Felson for her generous support of the podcast.

artsnow.usc.edu

“What’s the best song for two people kissing in the rain in 1926?” In episode three, we are joined by music executive and recording artist Sarah McMullen, who is leading the way as part of a new generation of music supervisors redefining what that role means and what it means for the future of music itself. The new ears behind beloved film and TV company A24’s music supervision slate, Sarah's resume includes dynamic projects with Netflix, Apple, TBWA\Media Arts Lab and more. In this episode, Sarah shares how the creative challenge of clearing samples and placing music in film, television and beyond is shaped by her family’s own notable musical legacy, details how she is navigating the introduction of AI into a rapidly changing music and technological environment, and offers advice for aspiring supervisors on how to set boundaries for success in creative fields.  

Music Credits

"Creativity," Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock

The New Lost City Ramblers

Mother Maybelle Carter

“Skyscraper,” Sarah McMullen

“Never Too Much,” Luther Vandross

Sweet Emma Barrett And Her New Orleans Music

Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show (Live), Kendrick Lamar

“Reunion,” Matthew Herbert 

Matteah Baim

Arts Talk is hosted by Josh Kun, USC Vice Provost for the Arts and USC Annenberg Professor and Chair in Cross Cultural Communication at the University of Southern California. Arts Talk is produced by Perry B. Johnson, with sound design, editing and mixing by Matteah Baim. 

Special thanks to Suzanne Felson for her generous support of the podcast.

artsnow.usc.edu

What does it mean to be an “architect of human fulfillment?” In episode two, we are joined by visionary architect and polymath Kulapat Yantrasast (@thekulaparty), founder and creative director of WHY, the world renowned multidisciplinary design firm, whose extensive resume includes award-winning projects for The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City), the Musée du Louvre (Paris), ILMI Science Discovery & Innovation Center (Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), The Tchaikovsky Academic Opera & Ballet Theater (Perm, Russia), Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (Los Angeles), The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco (San Francisco), Grand Rapids Art Museum (Grand Rapids, MI), The Speed Art Museum (Louisville, KY) and The Tyler Museum of Art (Tyler, TX), among many others. In this episode, Yantrasast emphasizes the importance of approaching design as an open and intimate relationship with space, place and community. He shares how curiosity and collaboration form the ethos of his creative practice and guide his stewardship of the architects, landscape architects, designers, and strategists that comprise WHY’s interdisciplinary teams across offices in Los Angeles, New York, Paris and Tokyo. 

Music Credits

"Creativity," Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock

Hiroshi Yoshimura 

The Paradise Bangkok Molam International Band

Arts Talk is hosted by Josh Kun, USC Vice Provost for the Arts and USC Annenberg Professor and Chair in Cross Cultural Communication at the University of Southern California. Arts Talk is produced by Perry B. Johnson, with sound design, editing and mixing by Matteah Baim. 

Special thanks to Suzanne Felson for her generous support of the podcast.

artsnow.usc.edu