Podcast · Arts & Books

Frieze Masters Podcast

The Frieze Masters Podcast is back for 2025, bringing you seven conversations across art history curated by Arturo Galansino (Director General of Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi in Florence). Entitled 'Woven Histories' and recorded live at Frieze Masters 2025, this year's series features artists, cura

New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 38 min
Latest: 8 Jan 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

8 Jan 2026 · 40 min

Episode 7: Sculpting as a New Humanism | Antony Gormley on how sculpture can help us reconnect our bodies and the world around us

In the final episode of the 2025 Frieze Masters Podcast, artist Antony Gormley and curator Arturo Galansino discuss how sculpture can help us reconnect with our bodies and the world around us. Gormley asks, 'how can we make it about feeling and collective futures – rather than particularly powerful individuals?' 'How can we make it intimate again?' Sir Antony Gormley CH OBE RA is a British sculptor. His works include the Angel of the North (1998), a public sculpture in Gateshead, UK. He is joined by Arturo Galansino, art historian, curator, director general of the Palazzo Strozzi Foundation…

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Earlier episodes 29 most recent

S4 · E6 · 2 Jan 2026 · 33 min
Episode 6: Twisted Classic | Glenn Brown on Collecting, Displaying and Distorting Old Masters
'Every time you put a mark on a painting and you can ' t take it off, you are running the risk of destroying the painting,' says artist Glenn Brown. 'But that ' s what makes it exciting to paint.' In the sixth episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast 2025, British artist Glenn Brown – who has pioneered the use of visual appropriation in his work – and curator Arturo Galansino discuss the jeopardy and excitement of mark-making, and what it means to collect, display and distort the work of old masters . The Frieze Masters Talks programme and the Frieze Masters Podcast are brought to you by Frieze…
S4 · E5 · 26 Dec 2025 · 26 min
Episode 5: Fashion As Art | Émilie Hammen & Elizabeth Way
Is fashion art? Curators Émilie Hammen, Elizabeth Way and Arturo Galansino discuss the overlapping histories of fashion and art, and how contemporary designers are reconfiguring fashion's place in culture. 'Art, going back to the Renaissance, is emotional. It's intellectual, is apart from the body even as they paint are painting real life.' says Way. 'The Pre-Raphaelites and the arts and crafts movement took high art down from the wall and put it on the body, in their homes, in their lives.' The Frieze Masters Talks programme and the Frieze Masters Podcast are brought to you by Frieze in…
S4 · E4 · 18 Dec 2025 · 44 min
Episode 4: The Last Mughals | William Dalrymple
'Bahadur Shah Zafar writes poetry in six different languages and through the sheer brilliance of his example, he provokes this last great renaissance in Delhi.' – William Darymple In th e fourth episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast 2025, writer and broadcaster William Dalrymple discusses the art, poetry and politics of the last Mughals with curator Arturo Galansino . T ogether, t hey uncover the lesser-known histories of one of the defining chapters in the history of the Indian subcontinent – challenging colonial narratives and explo r ing what survives of the Mughals ' legacy today. The…
S4 · E3 · 11 Dec 2025 · 29 min
Episode 3: Black Atlas | Edward George & Matthew Harle
The Image of the Black archive at The Warburg Institute comprises more than 30,000 images documenting representations of people of African descent from antiquity to the civil rights era. In 2025, image s from this collection w ere shown in public for the first time as part of 'Black Atlas', an exhibition and moving-image essay directed by Edward George and produced by Matthew Harle – Arturo Galansino's guests on the third episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast 2025. T ogether, they discuss the legacy of Black imagery and its ability to reveal more than the creator's intention. The archive has…
S4 · E2 · 4 Dec 2025 · 34 min
Episode 2: An Encounter in Spiritual Spaces with Mark Rothko and Fra Angelico | Christopher Rothko & Carl Strehlke
When Mark Rothko visited Fra Angelico's frescoes at the c onvent of San Marco in Florence, he was ' overwhelmed ,' recounts his son, the psychologist and writer Christopher Rothko. ' That's what he wanted for his viewer ,' says Rothko, 't o look at his artwork as sources of inspiration, spirituality and contemplation.' In the second episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast 2025, Christopher Rothko is in conversation with curator and art historian Carl Strehlke and Arturo Galansino , director general of Palazzo Strozzi , to discuss the affinity between Rothko's abstract expressionism and the…
S4 · E1 · 27 Nov 2025 · 48 min
Episode 1: Confessions in the Museum | Tracey Emin, Nicholas Cullinan & Arturo Galansino
' M y discovery of early Renaissance art was completely by accident in the National Gallery, by just walking down a few more stairs ... I'd stay there for about an hour, and then I would come out, I'd close my eyes, and as I pushed the doors, I would imagine my paintings ' . –Tracey Emin In the first episode of the 2025 Frieze Masters Podcast, artist Tracey Emin, Nic h olas Cullinan (director, British Museum), and their host Arturo Galansino ( Director General, Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi) discuss their early experiences and evolving relationships within the arts, delving into topics such as…
S3 · E7 · 17 Jan 2025 · 31 min
Episode 7: Plastic Power | Abraham Thomas, Nathalie du Pasquier & Annabelle Selldorf
' Whe n yo u mak e a painting, yo u wan t to mak e a good painting. You are more intereste d in the composition of the thing s , tha n in the precis e description of the thing s .' – Nathalie Du Pasquier In the seventh and final episode of Series 3 of the Frieze Masters Podcast, artist Nathalie Du Pasquier, architect Annabelle Selldorf and Curator Abraham Thomas discuss the plasticity of the creative environment, and the collisions and contrasts between the visions of artists, architects and curators. Nathalie du Pasquier is an artist and co-founder of the Memphis design group in the 1980s;…
S3 · E6 · 10 Jan 2025 · 35 min
Episode 6: Pictorial Language & Poetic Translations | Glenn Ligon, Zoé Whitley & Dia al-Azzawi
'If I can let the viewer stand in front of my painting and question – if they can ask a question – this is success.' – Glenn Ligon How does the written and spoken word relate to the visual language of painting, sculpture and installation? To discuss this connection and the power and potential of poetry , the sixth episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast brings together artists Glenn Ligon and Dia al-Azzawi and Chisenhale Director Zoé Whitley . Glenn Ligon is a New York-based artist whose career has explored history, literature and society through painting and conceptual art; Dia al-Azzawi is…
S3 · E5 · 3 Jan 2025 · 30 min
Episode 5: The State We're In | Mark Leckey, Jenny Waldman & Polly Staple
' What's left for art? Art can offer ritual and ceremony, a communal place where bodies can gather. It's a place where t hings can happen visually, musically, sonically, and in dance and with the voice. ' – Mark Leckey In the fifth episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast, a rtist Mark Leckey, curator Polly Staple and D irector of Art Fund Jenny Waldman reflect on the le gacy and future of British art and discuss how it might expand its reach t o engage young and underrepresented audiences . Mark Leck e y is a Turner Prize-winning artist whose work is infused with popular culture, memory and…
S3 · E4 · 20 Dec 2024 · 35 min
Episode 4: Spatial Intelligence | Nairy Baghramian, Glenn Lowry & Julian Rose
'Isn ' t to exhibit to historicize?' – Julian Rose Artist Nairy Baghramian , D irector of the Museum of Modern Art Glenn Lowry and historian Julian Rose all have extensive experience of presenting art in public places and thinking about civic spaces. In th e fourth episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast , they come together to rethink the role and design of museums in shaping cultural exchange. Nairy Baghramian is an artist whose sculptures offer new ways to address the architectural, social and political conditions of contemporary culture; Glenn Lowry is director of the Museum of Modern Art…
S3 · E3 · 13 Dec 2024 · 41 min
Episode 3: The Power of Painting | Gabriele Finaldi, Jan Dalley & Shirazeh Houshiary
' The viewer makes the painting alive. Without the viewer, that thing doesn't exist .' – Shirazeh Houshiary What happens to our understanding of painting when we expand the canon across eras and cultures? In the third episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast, a rtist Shirazeh Houshiary , D irector of the National Gallery Gabriele Finaldi and arts editor Jan Dalley reflect o n the celebration and subversion of narrative through painting . Shirazeh Houshiary is an Iran-born, London-based artist, working in painting and sculpture; Gabriele Finaldi is D irector of the National Gallery in London ;…
S3 · E2 · 6 Dec 2024 · 49 min
Episode 2: Faces of Community | Barbara Walker, Ming Smith & Lou Stoppard
'You have an idea and it goes off in another direction and you either pull it back or you go on the journey. I knew I wanted to make some portraits, but I also knew I didn't want to. I wanted to create some tension.' – Barbara Walker In the second episode of the Frieze Masters Podcast, artists Barbara Walker and Ming Smith, and writer and curator Lou Stoppard discuss the evolution of portraiture and ask how it can better reflect and build community. Barbara Walker is a British artist whose work interrogates power, identity and the visibility of Black experience; Ming Smith is an American…
S3 · E1 · 29 Nov 2024 · 34 min
Episode 1: Good Governance | Chris Bryant MP, Jeremy Deller and Victoria Siddall
'What do we want the UK to look like in 10 years, 20 years, 50 years in terms of culture?' – Victoria Siddall The first episode of the 2024 Frieze Masters Podcast brings together Sir Chris Bryant MP, artist Jeremy Deller and new director of the National Portrait Gallery Victoria Siddall to talk about 'Good Governance'. How can everyone in the UK access art? And what role should government play in the country's creative education? Chris Bryant is the recently appointed as Minister of State at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Culture, Media and…
S2 · E8 · 26 Jan 2024 · 28 min
Episode Eight: On Context | Gilbert & George & Dr Nicholas Cullinan
'Sex, death, race and religion' – these are the topics that the London-based artists Gilbert and George announced they wanted to cover in this talk with Dr Nicholas Cullinan of the National Portrait Gallery. On Context offers insights into the artist's relationship to concepts: from sculpture to the city, 'picture making' to posterity. Gilbert and George resist many of the contexts and interpretations projected onto their practice: trying to keep their work as accessible and open as possible, reflecting their self-proclaimed belief in 'art for all'. 'We like to let the pictures make…
S2 · E7 · 19 Jan 2024 · 36 min
Episode Seven: On Interiors | Mandy El-Sayegh, Flavia Frigeri & Valerie Cassel Oliver
The London home of Galerie Thaddeus Ropac is a traditional eighteenth-century Mayfair townhouse, once home to the Bishop of Ely. But for artist Mandy El-Sayegh 's 2023 exhibition 'Interiors', its spaces were transformed into a riot of colour and pattern across paintings, textiles and furniture. In On Interiors , El-Sayegh talks to Dr Flavia Frigeri of the National Portrait Gallery, and Valerie Cassel Oliver of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, who is also the curator of the 2023 Spotlight section at Frieze Masters, about the relationship between inner and outer space: the space of the studio…
S2 · E6 · 12 Jan 2024 · 36 min
Episode Six: On Space | Rachel Whiteread & Briony Fer
The year 1993 marked a watershed for the famous Turner Prize, when it was awarded for the first time to a woman. That artist was Rachel Whiteread and the work was House in East London. In On Space , Whiteread is in conversation with the art historian Briony Fer . Together, they discuss the urges and concerns that underpin Whiteread's work, from seminal works of the 1990s to her more recent projects, such as the site-specific commission unveiled in the summer of 2023 at Palazzo della Ragione in Bergamo, Italy, which responds to the experience and legacy of the COVID-19 pandemic. [Drawing] is…
S2 · E5 · 5 Jan 2024 · 38 min
Episode Five: On Power | Thomas J Price & Dr Gus Casely-Hayford
In On Power , London-based multidisciplinary artist Thomas J Price is in conversation with Dr Gus Casely-Hayford , the inaugural Director of V&A East. Together, they reflect on how monuments created for the public realm are not just aesthetic objects but artefacts often bound up in values, ideologies and power systems. Price, in his words, wants to convey 'the sense of another person' and has spent the past two decades creating large-scale figurative sculptures of everyday, unidentified Black individuals, often located in public spaces: such as the commission honouring the Windrush…
S2 · E4 · 15 Dec 2023 · 28 min
Episode Four: On Studios | Arlene Shechet & Sheena Wagstaff
In 2023, Frieze Masters fair sought to break the artist's studio open to a new audience with a new section, Studio , curated by Sheena Wagstaff – the former Chairman of the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Met and now Met's Chair Emerita. In On Studios , Wagstaff talks with one of the Studio artists, Arlene Shechet , exploring how central the place and space of making is to her work, as well as its significance in the realm of creativity. 'It's not a genius move, it's just hard work. It just means that you know that you want something more, you know that you want something…
S2 · E3 · 8 Dec 2023 · 48 min
Episode Three: On Photography | Tim Walker & Jerry Stafford
On Photography asks what it means today for an artist to work with a living, breathing icon, like the actress Tilda Swinton . Tim Walker , the noted artist and photographer, is joined by his long-time collaborator, stylist Jerry Stafford , to talk about their work together with Tilda Swinton. Dr Nicholas Cullinan , Director of the National Portrait Gallery, London, moderates the conversation. 'When I'm scared of something or someone, that scare turns into being photogenic. […] The situation becomes very heightened and I become very alert and I then I think I make better work.' – Tim Walker…
S2 · E2 · 7 Dec 2023 · 34 min
Episode Two: On Display | Shirin Neshat, Jamie Fobert, Dr Nicholas Cullinan
In On Display , artist Shirin Neshat is in conversation with Jamie Fobert , the architect of London's newly reopened National Portrait Gallery, and its Director, Dr Nicholas Cullinan , moderated by Tim Marlow , Director of the Design Museum. Neshat reflects on her 2018 portrait of Nobel Peace Prize awardee Malala Yousafzai that was commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery. The conversation explores the history of this much-loved institution and how its contemporary meaning is shaped through its program, its work with artists like Neshat, and in the very fabric of its building. 'I think…
S2 · E1 · 30 Nov 2023 · 34 min
Episode One: On Rebellion | Maggi Hambling & Sarah Lucas
In 2005, British artists Maggi Hambling and Sarah Lucas met at the historic Colony Room Club in London's Soho. There, they discovered that they shared the same irreverent and unapologetic attitude – and even the same birthday. In On Rebellion , chaired by Louisa Buck , these two British artists discuss their influences, their reactions to rules and expectations, facing up to mortality and being each other's muse. 'I think great art creates somewhere where life and death cohabit, where life and death come together' – Maggi Hambling Maggi Hambling is a British painter and sculptor. Hambling's…
S1 · E6 · 24 Jan 2023 · 52 min
Anthea Hamilton & Nicholas Cullinan
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Anthea Hamilton & Nicholas Cullinan in partnership with Studio Voltaire @studiovoltairelondon . Their conversation explores the trajectory of Hamilton's work, the geopolitical basis of her identity as a 'Londoner' and how elements from the 'fourth dimension' shape her work. "We're actually functioning in a four-dimensional space, and I tried to think about what might be in the fourth dimension, if it's not just depth. And for me, those fourth dimensional things are emotions, power, wealth, and those are the kinds of things I think, which are…
S1 · E8 · 16 Jan 2023 · 58 min
Love Lucian: The letters and early life of Lucian Freud
Frieze Masters presents Love Lucian: The Letters and Early Life of Lucian Freud in partnership with the Freud Museum ( @freudmuseum ) . This episode features Hannah Rothschild in conversation with Martin Gayford and David Dawson , speaking on their new publication and the first exhibition of Lucian Freud's works at the Freud Museum London. Exploring the overlapping themes present in both Love Lucian and the exhibition, the discussion draws out some interesting and lesser-known facets of Lucian's early life. Having uncovered illustrated letters to friends, love letters, and even telegrams,…
S1 · E7 · 9 Jan 2023 · 1 hr 4 min
Kamala Ibrahim Ishag & Hans Ulrich Obrist
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Kamala Ibrahim Ishag and Hans Ulrich Obrist in partnership with the Serpentine ( @serpentineuk ). To celebrate the opening of her solo exhibition at Serpentine, Ishag returns to the RCA where she studied in the 1960s. She discusses her background, her relationship with nature and the influence of the Sudanese Zār cult on her work. "If people are really genuine with their plants and they respect their plants, they should talk to them as human, as a source of creation from God. Humans and plants, we are all the same." – Kamala Ibrahim Ishag Kamala…
S1 · E5 · 16 Dec 2022 · 41 min
Doron Langberg & Nicholas Cullinan
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Doron Langberg & Nicholas Cullinan , Director of the National Portrait Gallery in London. Their conversation explores various aspects of Langberg's work including his portraiture in the context of the resurrection of figurative painting, and the influence of his educational background. "Painting really has always been my language, I feel like I almost think of it as my first language. I have been painting since I was very, very young and it's really kind of my way of experiencing the world... for me, my [artistic] process [involves questions of]…
S1 · E4 · 5 Dec 2022 · 52 min
Zadie Xa & Vivien Zhang
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Zadie Xa & Vivien Zhang in partnership with Whitechapel Gallery ( @whitechapelgallery ). Their conversation explores Xa's new exhibition at Whitechapel as they reflect on ideas of cultural identity, the appropriation and gentrification of symbols, and disparities between static and performance art. "[The Yin Yang] feels like a very Korean or Asian thing. This is an authentic image that I can kind of attach meaning to, but then of course, it's something that has been so heavily commodified by the West and in skate and surfboard culture in…
S1 · E3 · 28 Nov 2022 · 45 min
Andra Ursuţa & Jeremy Deller
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Andra Ursuţa & Jeremy Deller in partnership with David Zwirner Gallery ( @davidzwirner ). Their conversation explores Ursuţa's new exhibition at David Zwirner as well as her inclination towards using clichés and the 'lowest' regarded forms of artistry, her embrace of spirituality and the influence of the ancient on her work. "I look at a lot of ancient sculpture. I think, at least in my opinion, that if you try to make something that answers too perfectly to the sort of visual demands of today, your work will look very dated, very quickly." –…
S1 · E2 · 18 Nov 2022 · 52 min
Amy Sherald, Ekow Eshun & Jenni Sorkin
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Amy Sherald , Ekow Eshun and Jenni Sorkin in partnership with Hauser & Wirth ( @hauserwirth ). The panelists discuss Sherald's practice and the relevance of her work within the canon of historical portraiture. This episode also marks the release of the artist's first substantial monograph by Hauser & Wirth Publishers, providing a unique insight into her work and studio practice, alongside newly-commissioned texts. "When I'm considering my Americanness, and my American story, I think farming and agriculture is essential to that. It's the reason…
S1 · E1 · 11 Nov 2022 · 56 min
Tyler Mitchell & Zoé Whitley
Frieze Masters presents this conversation with Tyler Mitchell & Zoé Whitley in partnership with Gagosian ( @gagosian ). Their conversation explores Mitchell's new exhibition, Chrysalis , at Gagosian, and a special commission for this year's edition of Frieze Masters that reflects on his conceptual and editorial photography practices. His work is rooted in reinterpreting the tropes employed in both the Western canon of portraiture and the contemporary fashion magazine. "Sitting at the metaphorical edges of these pictures is this idea of what was socially denied and what was not…

About Frieze Masters Podcast

Frieze Masters Podcast is a English arts & books podcast from Frieze. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: Frieze
Language: English
Category: Arts & Books
New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 38 min
Latest episode: 8 Jan 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1867245769
Rights: 2025

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