Bates Museum of Art Podcast

Peter visits the museum's weekly life drawing session to interview local artists Joel Babb, Anita Clearfield, and Joe Klofas. Topics include challenges of drawing from a live model, the role of the local community, and advice for beginners. Intro with Amelia Killackey '25. Check out Joel Babb's website here! Check out Anita Clearfield's website here! All music composed and produced...

Peter sits down with the museum's Director, Dan Mills, to discuss his career in museums as well as past and upcoming exhibitions. Topics include the many roles of a director, what it takes to connect with a campus community, and expanding the museum's programming outside the gallery. Want to learn more about our upcoming exhibitions? Click here to learn more! All music composed and produce...

Peter joins Julia Neumann '25, Simone Obregon '27, Owen Haddad '25, Carley Freund '26, and Kevin Duong '25 to talk about their semester at the museum and collections research. Topics include the recent solar eclipse, coastal Maine, and how identity informs art. ⁠Click here to see the artwork discussed in the episode.⁠ All music composed and produced by Oliver Todreas '23. C...

Peter sits down with returning guests Samantha Sigmon and Clara Kennedy to explore the museum's new exhibition, Neue Slowenische Kunst | Monumental Spectacular . Topics include totalitarianism, parody, and methods for reclaiming symbolism. Season 4 premiere! Check out art from the exhibition and find more information here! All music composed and produced by Oliver Todreas '23. Cover art by...

In 1936, Arthur Rothstein created the black and white photograph, Migrant Family Oklahoma , which depicts a family of six in front of their car. Through his lens, Rothstein captured the realities of migrant farmers displaced as a result of the Dust Bowl. This image, which was commissioned by the Farm Security Administration as a part of a larger series, is still a valued historical document today....

In this episode, Olivia Torrington ‘27 and Leo Silverman ‘27 analyze the composition and impact of the 2002 documentary photograph titled Untitled (1) , taken in China by Chinese photographer Ming Zhou. Through intricate visual analysis, we explore both the overt and obscure stylistic choices Zhou employs to portray a narrative of oppression and compliance in China. We contextualize this documenta...

In this podcast, we delve into a photograph by Larry Fink from the Harlem Youth Congressional School Collection. Taken in February of 1964, this image depicts a well-dressed Black man delivering a speech to a relatively large audience. Rendered in black and white, the photograph explores the intersection of race, power dynamics, community, and ethnography. Through the lens of documentary photograp...

This podcast explores the photographer Ernst Haas and his photograph Homecoming Prisoner taken in 1948. Through visual analysis and critical thinking, we will attempt to unearth the photographs' meaning and message. We start by diving into Ernst Haas’s life and career that leads up to the creation of the photograph. We then analyze the story and meaning behind this famous and emotionally provo...

Most of us know Serena Williams to be one of the most accomplished female tennis stars or athletes known in the US. But how do we, as outsiders of her personal life, truly view her? This image, “Serena Williams, Key Biscaayne, Fl.,” by Walter Iooss captures Williams in a limousine, dressed up for an event, fixing her makeup. It depicts her high social, financial, and athletic standing. We aim to a...

In this podcast, we explore Walker Evans’ work with the Farm Security Administration (FSA), specifically his photograph Store with false front. Vicinity of Selma, Alabama . We engage with Roy Stryker’s mission, capturing “America for Americans,” and the politics behind the collection. Simultaneously, we address Evans’ desire to make an artistic product and what this means for the truth value of a...

This podcast is centered around the 1991 Nan Coulter photograph, Azle, Texas: War Decor, Photographs in America, which features a building with yellow ribbons on the doors. The hosts, Savannah Compare and Ava Steinberger, will analyze the symbolism in the composition of the image, as well as tie the image into the complexities of war photography and how much it varies and symbolizes within the lar...

The National Child Labor Committee, founded in 1904, was dedicated to promoting social reform as it pertains to child labor. Hired by the NCLC, Lewis Hine advocated for photography as a medium of education. Describing his craft as “detective work” he was an investigative photojournalist capturing the dire conditions of child labor in New England. Among the earliest examples of documentary photogra...

Can a photograph ever just be a photograph? [or is there always a communicated message from a photograph as a record?] This podcast analyzes Jurgen Schadeberg’s photograph, We Won't’ Move , shot in the shantytown of Sophiatown in 1955. Jurgen Schadeberg was a white photographer who immigrated to South Africa from Germany. He was renowned for his work in the South African magazine Drum at the b...

Welcome to "Through the Lens of History: Unveiling America's Dust Bowl," where I, Samantha Simmons, delve into the captivating world of documentary photography. In this episode, I transport you to the heart of the Dust Bowl era, exploring Arthur Rothstein's iconic photograph Fleeing A Dust Storm, Cimarron County, Oklahoma . Join me as I unravel the visual and emotional layers of...

As individuals living in a technologically advanced society, we have access to images on a daily basis and are trained to believe everything before our eyes. Rarely do we stop and question the intentionality behind an image or its neutrality, making us easy subjects for manipulation. This podcast examines the ever-changing role of the camera in China from the start of the Mao Zedong era (1949 - 19...

In this podcast, hosts Simone Obregon and Hollis Hale discuss the photograph Guerrilla Zone , taken by Donna DeCesare in 1988. They delve into the history behind this photograph, talking about the El Salvadoran Civil War and the context in which this photograph is understood. Analyzing the image alongside another piece of DeCesare’s work, Untitled (2001) as well as an image of Robert Nickelson’s,...

In this episode, Bates first-year Carly Philpott and Monmouth Academy senior Izzy Hamann use photography to dive into the rich history of women and the LGBTQ+ community in Northampton, Massachusetts. Through this, they attempt to find some context in Donna Ferrato’s 1994 image of Ketta McGraw and Jaye Pope holding their first child, entitled Immaculate Conception . They cover topics such as the pl...

In this episode, Samantha Quatrano and Meara McVearry examine Berenice Abbott’s 1965 photograph, Lobster Car . They explore the historical and generational struggles within the Maine lobstering industry and as Mainers, Samantha and Meara bring an inside perspective to the conversation. Through this documentary photograph, they contemplate the contrast of rural and urban life captured across Abbot’...

This episode explores the works and social context of documentary photographs taken by Walker Evans during his time in the Farm Security Administration (1935-1937). The main focus will be Evans’ Penny Picture Display, Savannah 1936 , which came towards the end of Evans’ time with the Farm Security Administration. We will further discuss how Penny Picture Display compares to another of Evans’ works...

Peter and Prof. Erin Nolan discuss the upcoming series of student made, research based podcasts on documentary photography in the museum collection. Want a preview of what images will be explored over the next 15 episodes? Click here! All music composed and produced by Oliver Todreas '23. Cover art by Lucy Sherman '23.

Peter sits down with Professors Wes Chaney, Kirk Read, and Jeremy Cornelius to talk about how their classes and research have connected with the museum and how disparate disciplines can all draw on the collection. Season 2 finale! Links to works discussed: Chinese Propaganda Posters from the Cultural Revolution Lalla Essaydi, Les Femmes Du Maroc: La Grande Odalisque Wally Reindhart's depiction...

Peter joins Lola Buczkowski '25, Josephine Woodruff '24, Samantha Gabel '26, Keira January '25, Jensen Nida '24, and Lucy Sterba '26 to talk about their recent research into art and artists featured in our current exhibitions. Come and see them for yourself! Click here to see the artwork discussed in the episode. Click here to lean more about Exploding Native Inevitable and...

Nick '26 turns the tables to interview Peter '22 about his position at the museum, why he took the job, the opportunities and challenges of working in the museum, and analogizing the museum to Star Wars and Star Trek. Interested in learning more? Click here to visit our website page on Peter's position and how to apply. All music composed and produced by Oliver Todreas. Cover art by Lu...

Peter sits down with Nick, Anthony, Corie, and Samantha to discuss all things Halloween from the museum collection. A link can be found here to the portfolio with all the images we discuss and many more. Original music composed and produced by Oliver Todreas. Intro voiceover performed by @mistercorley on Fiverr. Cover art by Lucy Sherman. Edited by Nick Turzio.

Peter sits down with artist and educator Randy Williams to discuss his career as a museum educator, art accessibility, visual literacy, teaching as an artist, and what we can all learn by taking the time to talk to a painting. You can find Randy's website here to learn more about his artistic practice. All music composed and produced by Oliver Todreas. Cover art by Lucy Sherman. Edited by Nick...