The Whispering Gallery

In ancient Mesopotamia people didn’t just want to believe in ghosts, or yearn for an extraordinary encounter in a shadowy haunted building. They believed in ghosts. Ghosts were simply part of normal everyday life. They were to put it plainly— expected. Let's take a closer look at the first known drawing of a ghost--drawn in clay. If a ghost were to become a problem or a nuisance, something would n...

Listen to find a young scientist recording color while at the cusp of discovery, —a bilingual Swedish chemist adding a new but dangerous pigment to the game, —and we will put a well-intentioned pigment-based hypothesis to bed about the death of Napoleon Bonaparte—just a few of the unforgettable stories of pigments from our colorful past! You’re listening to the Whispering Gallery podcast so keep y...

Dig up the disturbing story of the many desecrated mummies of ancient Egyptians, and their feline friends, who were meant to be undisturbed. It’s not just a scary story but the terrifying reality of Mummy Brown paint. “A few odd limbs…” The color: Mummy Brown has a seriously haunting story. Fair Use: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwXfvfPy6fc PBS special: King Tut Special posted by Darryl Kinson...

Yoshitoshi's 36 Ghost woodblock prints are the focus of this episode. I’ve read he wanted to create 100, but there are 36 Ghost woodblock prints and I’ve heard the “ghost” expression may not be an entirely accurate translation especially as you dig into the stories. There are some ghosts, but there are other “strange” things depicted including demons. (Ukiyo-e) The image for this episode is from W...

Grab a warm cup of tea and join us for some Japanese ghost stories and folklore in this introduction to Yoshitoshi's Thirty-six Ghosts (that he created as woodblock prints). The stories are read to you from the book "Japanese Legends and Folklore - Samurai Tales, Ghost Stories, Legends, Fairy Tales, Myths and Historical Accounts" by A.B. Mitford. We'll be exploring the ghostly woodblock prints in...

Just over two decades ago Edward St. John Gorey left us to follow the path taken by the doomed Gashlycrumb Tinies. A Pisces, he was born in February of 1925 he used his pen and ink drawings to invite us into his cross-hatched Edwardian and Victorian styled stories.  E is for Edward who attended the ballet G is for Gorey who poked the bear with his story If you haven’t seen his drawings please, ple...

Edward Gorey's pen and ink drawings, with cross hatching, give off a spooky vibe. He leaves quite a bit to the reader/viewers imagination. Join me for a a reading of "The Doubtful Guest" written and illustrated by Edward Gorey.  Then we take a detour to his favorite breakfast haunt with "Edward Gorey's Favorite Diner Isn't Spooky At All" by Tove Danovich Updated February 13, 2018 MyRecipes.com | E...

What made the Polybius arcade game strange, and so scary? Well, it’s not a real game. It’s fakelore, better known as urban legend (from what I’ve read there are games by that name now, but they came out after the rumor-mill had been started. What made it scary? The threat it posed to players Health and well-being. The men in black, the possibility they were tracking the high scores for their organ...

Special Note: 07/09/21 This episode is steeped video game history (art/games/Atari). A industry insider is reviewing the episode and I'll re-upload this episode with any updates.  I'll be getting episode 2 ready with more behind the scenes stories about art revisions at Atari, and the story of Polybius, the Phantom of the arcade. We’re tracking early era video game art from the mid-1900’s to the t...

Join me for some detective work, to find clues about the missing flowers and find out why the Semper Augustus bulb was so highly regarded, and how tulips made it to Holland in the first place. And what's the deal with the missing flowers when they appear to be all accounted for in the Dutch Golden age paintings? Let’s get started and dig into the shadowy garden of secrets. During the Dutch Golden...

Today we’re continuing our two part journey into sand paintings not long for this world. This time we’re heading into the world of sacred sand paintings at what’s known as the roof of the world, Tibet, an autonomous zone in China which is just north of the Himalayan mountains.  Let’s go beyond the spinning Tibetan prayer wheels, the luminous glow of multitudes of flickering butter candles, and int...

This episode of unusual art stories takes us into the parched mysteries of the the southwest desert in the United States to the Navajo (Dine') Nation where sunburnt stone and windswept canyons have witnessed generations of legendary healing from sand paintings that may seem to be an enigma to outsiders of this solitary wilderness.  This is part one, of a two part series, on the impermanent nature...

Venture into the past where some viking art was expressed as stone ships put to harbor inland. Within the pages of a book a stone ship rests, nestled in a clearing surrounded by pine-tree-guardians, where the grasses grow right up against the stones; breaking like calm seas in wispy dry strands. Listen to this episode to find out why the stone ships earth art was created. Please Note: the various...

This art ghost story should not be missed! Join Emily and Suzanne to wrap up this series on the sighting (and photo) of who some say is Claude Monet's ghost! Find out about the colors Monet painted with as an impressionistic artist, his vegetable garden, and even his final resting place.  If you're new to the Whispering Gallery podcast and our spooky, spine-tingling and hard-to-believe art stories...

In this second episode we talk more about the impressionistic French artist Claude Monet. Gain insight on his famous water lilies, and find out what happened at the art gallery to make them believe his ghost had visited them.  Stay tuned to catch the third and final episode about the artist Claude Monet and the mystery surrounding the ghost story. If you're new to the Whispering Gallery podcast an...

As we begin to explore the possibility of Claude Monet's ghost visiting the Cleveland Museum of Art, we wanted to get to know the impressionist painter. Monet lived in Giverny, France. He loved flowers and he painted the waterlilies in his garden many times. He is quoted as saying: "My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece"  Find out where his waterlily pond came from (it wasn't a natural pond)....

Monet loved flowers and he had two thriving gardens. It seemed that Persephone's story was appropriate to lead us in to the ghost story. Please check out the WhisperingGalleryPodcast   on Instagram for photos that we post about these episodes.  The image displayed is Water Lillies painted in 1916 by Claude Monet. https://www.wikiart.org/en/claude-monet/water-lilies-40 (Public Domain) Please Suppor...

Join us in the fairy circle to learn about the painting "Midsummer Eve" by Edward Robert Hughes. He was influenced by aestheticism, his uncle who was also an artist, and the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood; ultimately studying at the Royal Academy of Arts.  Ok Gallery-whisperers let’s tread softly through the fog that lingers and hides shadows, and that could possibly even disguise shadowy creatures an...

Put on your reading glasses join us in the Whispering Gallery to hear about some groovy science fiction books from the 1960's and 1970's! When it comes to the sci fi book covers we try to paint pictures with words. Thank you for joining us in far away jungles, with rockets and robots! This episode was a funky journey into the realm of science fiction book cover art. If you're new to the Whispering...

Thanks for being curious with us! We talk about Vincent van Gogh - his art, including his painting of the Almond Blossoms for his godson and his mental and physical health. We hypothesize that his death wasn't a suicide. We hope you'll join us! If you're new to the Whispering Gallery podcast and our spooky, spine-tingling and hard-to-believe art stories I hope you'll subscribe and join our communi...

Vincent van Gogh is known for his art. For impressionistic paintings bursting with intensity of color and brushstrokes! Uncover some of the mysteries of Vincent's life, from what Theo called his "storms" to the complexity of what physical and mental health issues may have been ongoing. (The art shown is Still Life of Two Sunflowers by Vincent Van Gogh, Public Domain from Wiki art.) If you're new t...

How could we not talk about the Black Forest gateau (or cake) for a moment? We get back to reality with the real Black Forest which stands between the Nuremberg, Germany and Basel, Switzerland. Find out about the history and current practices of creating engravings and prints.   Thanks for listening! Be sure to tell a friend about the podcast to help us grow! Danke Schon!  If you're new to the Whi...

A broadsheet news article was printed and circulated reporting an event that had taken place in the skies over the city of Nuremberg, Germany before dawn on April 14, 1561. The broadsheet featured a woodcut engraving illustrating the “celestial phenomenon” that many who lived in the city, and outside the city gates had witnessed. The woodcut engraving and text were created by Hans Wolff Glaßer. We...

Find out more about the mysterious kraken and dive into deep-sea gigantism and find out who's likely the largest of the cephalopods! We hope you'll join us! If you're new to the Whispering Gallery podcast and our spooky, spine-tingling and hard-to-believe art stories I hope you'll subscribe and join our community! Please rate and review the podcast and share it with a friend. Take care! Say hello,...

The Pacific Northwest is beautiful in October; at the Heceta Head Light Keepers home the sweet peas were still in bloom, the herbs in the garden were doing great and pumpkins adorned the stairs to the porch. The Heceta Head lighthouse is a working lighthouse that first went into service in the spring of 1894. Learn more about the historic lighthouse and the ghost story. If you're new to the Whispe...