PEMcast

This episode of the PEMcast looks at the life and legacy of Reverend William Bentley who chronicled his busy days as a clergyman from 1784 to 1819 with an unmatched dedication and flourish. We know so much about Salem, Massachusetts and its quirky history in part because of this meticulous diary keeping. We explore Bentley's living quarters and his vast collection of objects, as well as the more grand home next door and a piece of its dark history. Come with us on this romp through time, place and the mind of a total polymath.

Bats have an interesting association with Salem, a place that celebrates Halloween pretty much year round. We're used to seeing multiple versions of Dracula around town. But a small colony of live Egyptian fruit bats living in a specially designed enclosure at the Peabody Essex Museum...that's something new. In this episode, we give much respect and appreciation to bats as vital living beings on the planet. Join host DInah Cardin, curator Jane Winchell and local artist Maia Mattson. The episode takes us foraging for plants in Salem, looking for bats in California and under a night sky in Maine.

In this epsisode of the PEMcast we go behind the scenes of PEM's latest Salem Witch Trials exhibition. We examine objects that belonged to the Salem Puritans and attempts to restore justice from the 17th century to today.

As we anticipate the return of Pride to Salem, artists Bill Crisafi and Hogan McLaughlin are the featured guests on the PEMcast. They share with us their day-to-day creative collaborations and their compelling story of love.

In Episode 29 of the PEMcast, we delve into the hearts and minds of two artists, separated by geography and time, but inextricably linked in their curiosity, their exploration of Tibetan Buddhist spirituality and a traditional art form. We discover what each learned about themselves and their own cultures by traveling to the opposite side of the world. Spirits: Tsherin Sherpa with Robert Beer is on view at PEM through May 29, 2023.

The second part of PEMcast Episode 27 looks at the brief creative life of Patrick Kelly. This queer, Black fashion designer pushed for racial equality and forever changed fashion before his untimely death at the age of 35. Along with curators and Kelly's former partner, come celebrate the 1980's, as well as Kelly's designs and his meteoric rise from the Jim Crow South to the runways of Paris. Organized by the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Patrick Kelly: Runway of Love is on view at PEM through November 6, 2022.

The pandemic, war, mass shootings, changing laws about our bodies. In Episode 27 of the PEMcast, we explore themes of love and loss while also celebrating PRIDE. Listeners meet Canadian artist Zachari Logan, whose provocative drawings of flowers in various states of transformation speak to the power of loss and a flicker of hope. Remembrance is on view through May 7, 2023. Part 2 of the episode will look at the brief creative life of Patrick Kelly, who fought for racial equality and changed fashion forever. These groundbreaking designs are on view at PEM through November 6, 2022.