#621 Smashing Statues - Dr. Erin Thompson
The Not Old - Better Show
Paul Vogelzang
4.7 ā¢ 106 Ratings
šļø 3 May 2022
ā±ļø 30 minutes
šļø Recording | iTunes | RSS
š§¾ļø Download transcript
Summary
Smashing Statues - Dr. Erin Thompson
The Not Old Better Show, Smithsonian Associates Interview Series
Welcome to The Not Old Better Show, Smithsonian Associates interview series on radio and podcast.Ā I'm Paul Vogelzang and we have a wonderful episode today with Smithsonian Associate, Dr. Erin Thompson. Ā
Dr. Erin Thompson, is a professor of art crime at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and is a leading expert in the legal, political, and social issues involved in such battles.Ā As America's only professor of art crime, Dr. Thompson studies the black market for looted antiquities, art forgery, museum theft, and theĀ ethics of digital reproductions of US cultural heritage.
Dr. Thompson's new bookĀ Smashing Statues: The Rise and Fall of America's Public Monuments and her upcoming presentation at Smithsonian Associates areĀ the subject of our conversation today.Ā More details are found on our website and at Smithsonian Associates with links in our show notes.
A timely and fractious national debate over public monuments has erupted in America. Some people risk imprisonment to tear down long-ignored hunks of marble; others form armed patrols to defend them. Why do we care so much about statues? And who gets to decide which ones should stay up and which should come down?Ā American holds thousands of historical monumentsā¦
That of course is our guest today, authorĀ Erin L. ThompsonĀ as she traces the turbulent history of American monuments and its ironiesāstarting with the enslaved Black man who helped make the statue of Freedom that still sits atop the U.S. Capitolāand explores the surprising motivations behind such contemporary flashpoints as the toppling of a statue of Columbus at the Minnesota State Capitol in 2020. Ā
Please join me in welcoming to The Not Old Better Show Smithsonian Associate's interview series on radio and podcast, author, professor of art crime and Smithsonian Associate Dr. Erin Thompson.
For more information, please click HERE:Ā
https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/smashing-statues
Ā
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the Not Old Better Show, Smithsonian Associates interview series on radio and podcast. |
| 0:09.4 | I'm Paul Vogelsing and we have another wonderful episode today with Smithsonian |
| 0:13.7 | Associate, Dr. Aaron Thompson. |
| 0:16.5 | Dr. Aaron Thompson is a professor of art crime at the John J. College of Criminal Justice |
| 0:22.8 | and is a leading expert in illegal political and social issues involved in such battles. |
| 0:28.8 | As America's only professor of art crime, Dr. Thompson studies the black market for |
| 0:33.9 | looted antiquities, art forgery, museum theft, and the ethics of digital reproductions |
| 0:40.0 | of U.S. cultural heritage. |
| 0:42.5 | Dr. Thompson's new book, Smashing Statues the Rise and Fall of America's Public Monuments |
| 0:48.9 | and her upcoming presentation at Smithsonian Associates are the subject of our conversation |
| 0:53.8 | today. |
| 0:54.8 | More details are found on our website and at Smithsonian Associates website with links |
| 1:00.4 | in our show notes. |
| 1:01.7 | A timely and fractious national debate over public monuments has erupted in America. |
| 1:08.2 | Some people risk imprisonment to tear down long ignored hunks of marble and steel, others |
| 1:14.8 | form armed patrols to defend them. |
| 1:17.8 | Why do we care so much about statues? |
| 1:20.6 | And who gets to decide which ones should stay up and which ones should come down? |
| 1:26.7 | America holds thousands of historical statues and monuments. |
| 1:32.3 | Our monuments both reflect and shape how we see ourselves as a nation. |
| 1:37.7 | Arguing about monuments is not a pointless debate about the past. |
| 1:41.3 | It's a crucial negotiation for our future. |
... |
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