Napoleon! Barack Obama! Charles I! LL Cool J! What do all these dudes have in common? They were all painted (more or less) by contemporary artist, Kehinde Wiley. This episode is a deep dive into how Kehinde Wiley is working to make art history a more inclusive space, one work of art at a time. #BlackArtistsMatter

Plague! Corpse dismemberment! Pretty costumes! Derpy greyhounds! Necrotic Herbs! This episode has a little bit of everything. It takes you on a journey through five centuries to discuss the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood’s obsession with Boccaccio’s story about a young woman named Lisabetta and her most beloved pot o’basil. Come for the learning, stay in spite of my telling you how to carry the body of a full-grown man up dorm stairs.

NOTE: As of 2025, this track is 5+ years old (!!!). If the presentation style isn't your thing, consider listening to one of the newer episodes.

Mineralogists! Lapidary tools! The human crrrrrranium! This episode is an art historical deep-dive into the origins of the so-called "crystal skulls" and the people who made them famous.

Eggs! Bricks! Spine o' the fish! This episode covers a biggie, both figuratively and literally! Brunelleschi's dome for the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, Italy. With this project, Brunelleschi pulled off the impossible, utilizing 4 million bricks to build what remains the world's largest masonry dome. Come for the dome, stay for the random story about the martyred, seemingly fire-proof Saint Reparata. Happy listening!

Heads on sticks! Heads in wax! Heads in trunks! This hour-long episode is a deep dive into the life and work of Anna Maria Grosholtz... though you may call her Madame Tussaud. This episode covers it all—from little Marie’s birth in 1761 to the present-day process of making a new celebrity waxworks! Come for the wax heads, stay in spite of the bad French accent.

Clocks, candy, and human connection, oh my! This episode is a deep-dive into the work of Felix Gonzalez-Torres, a Cuban-born American artist active in the 1980s and 1990s. FGT was known for his use of "non-traditional" materials and his artistic engagement with the HIV/AIDs epidemic. This episode touches on a little on it all. Come for the knowledge, stay for the random digression into the dangers of beaded curtains.

Steel, drunken brawls, creeper derricks, oh my! Episode 17 is a deep dive into the development, design, and construction of Eero Saarinen's Gateway Arch in St. Louis, MO. Come for the facts, stay for (or in spite of) the bad jokes! Happy listening.

Immortality, mercury, and 7,000 warriors, oh my! Episode 16 covers the mausoleum and terracotta army of China's first emperor and a supremely odd duck, Qin Shi Huangdi. Come for the knowledge, stay despite my terrible Chinese pronunciation!

Cobras, canaries, and curses, oh my! This episode is the second half of a two-part deep dive into the discovery of King Tut's tomb, beginning with the discovery of the tomb in early November of 1922. You also get to hear me gush about my love of the 1999 cinematic masterpiece, The Mummy.

A boy pharaoh, a tempestuous archaeologist, and a rich English aristocrat walk into a bar... This episode is part one of a two part episode duology on the discovery of King Tut's tomb by Howard Carter in 1922. Part I covers years 1350 BCE - 1922, from Tutankhamun to telegrams. The story continues in Part II, which covers the discovery and its aftermath.