No. 96: Spotlighting the Detroit Institute of Arts

Episode No. 96 of The Modern Art Notes Podcast spotlights the unfolding crisis in Detroit, specifically as it related to the city’s art collection and the Detroit Institute of Arts.

The program was built around the dozens of emails we received from listeners when we asked them to share with us their memories of the DIA and their stories of how the DIA had been important in their lives. The stories of seven of those listeners — Taylor Renee Aldridge, Jaclyn Millichamp, Andrew Mackey, Julie Thomson, Lauren Rossi Harroun, Bernard Yenelouis and Michelle Perron — are at the core of this week’s show.

Because about 80 percent of the listeners who wrote in mentioned Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry murals as being of special import to them, this week’s MAN Podcast features an extra focus on Rivera’s masterpiece. Joining host Tyler Green to talk about the murals and the DIA’s plans to conserve 13 enormous cartoons that Rivera made in preparation for making the murals are:

  • Linda Downs, the executive director of the College Art Association and the author of the marvelous 1999 book “Diego Rivera: The Detroit Industry Murals;”
  • Nancy Sojka, a curator of prints, drawings and photographs at the DIA; and
  • Christopher Foster, a conservator at the DIA.

“The Rachel Maddow Show” clip featured in this week’s program is available in full here.

Images of cartoons for Rivera’s Detroit Industry murals discussed on the program follow.

Cartoon of Commercial Chemical Operations %28Detroit Industry south wall%29%2C Diego Rivera%2C 1932 Cartoon of Manufacture of Poisonous Gas Bombs%2C Diego Rivera %28Detroit Industry north wall%29%2C 1932 DIA staff looking at Rivera cartoon Cartoon of Woman Holdling Fruit %28Detroit Industry east wall%29%2C Diego Rivera%2C 1932 Cartoon of Vaccination %28Detroit Industry north wall%29%2C Diego Rivera%2C 1932 Cartoon of Pharmaceutics %28Detroit Industry south wall%29%2C Diego Rivera%2C 1932 Rivera cartoon - DIA staff