Did one of the world’s greatest cultural treasures get rescued… or stolen?

In this episode of Art Happens, we climb the Acropolis and unravel one of the art world’s longest-running controversies: the Parthenon Marbles. Carved nearly 2,500 years ago for the Parthenon in ancient Athens, these remarkable sculptures have spent more than two centuries in London after being removed by Lord Elgin during the days of the Ottoman Empire.

But who should own them today?

Join James William Moore as he explores the history of the Parthenon, the rise and fall of empires, the role of museums, and the passionate arguments on both sides of the debate. Were the marbles legally acquired? Does the British Museumserve as a steward of world culture, or should the sculptures be reunited with the monument they were created for in Athens?

Along the way, we’ll follow the marbles through their surprising journey—from temple to church, church to mosque, gunpowder magazine to museum centerpiece—and discover why this centuries-old dispute continues to shape conversations about cultural heritage, restitution, and who gets to tell the story of the past.

Because sometimes the biggest mysteries in art history aren’t about who made the art—they’re about who gets to keep it.

#ArtPodcast #ArtHistory #ParthenonMarbles #NotYourStuffyArtClass #Art

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J-Squared Aterlier (J2Atelier)
🌐 Website: J2 Atelier
📸 Instagram: @J2Atelier
James William Moore
🌐 Website: James William Moore
📸 Instagram: @the_jwmartist

Catch Lattes & Art, our sister podcast—coffee-fueled conversations with artists about process, inspiration, and the beautiful mess behind the work.

You can find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, Amazon Music, and Buzzsprout

What happens when a group of artists decides that reality is overrated?

In this episode of Art Happens: The Divine Mess of Art History, James William Moore dives into Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider), the short-lived but enormously influential German Expressionist movement that helped change the course of modern art. From the vibrant visions of Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc to ideas about spirituality, symbolism, color theory, and what Kandinsky called “inner necessity,” this movement challenged the very idea of what painting was supposed to do.

Along the way, we’ll explore blue horses, abstract landscapes, artistic rebellion, and the question that would echo through the twentieth century:

What if painting didn’t have to behave anymore?

Discover how a movement that lasted only from 1911 to 1914 helped pave the way for abstraction, Abstract Expressionism, and generations of artists who believed that emotion, intuition, and the inner world mattered just as much as what the eye could see.

Because sometimes the most revolutionary thing an artist can do is stop painting the world—and start painting the soul.

#ArtHistory #ArtEducation #BlueRider #WassilyKandinsky #BlaueReiter

Send us a text

Don't miss the video podcast version on YouTube!!!

Follow & Subscribe to Art Happens

Connect with Us:
J-Squared Aterlier (J2Atelier)
🌐 Website: J2 Atelier
📸 Instagram: @J2Atelier
James William Moore
🌐 Website: James William Moore
📸 Instagram: @the_jwmartist

Catch Lattes & Art, our sister podcast—coffee-fueled conversations with artists about process, inspiration, and the beautiful mess behind the work.

You can find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, Amazon Music, and Buzzsprout

Masterpiece Moment: Migrant Mother

Dorothea Lange’s Migrant Mother became one of the defining images of the Great Depression — a photograph of poverty, endurance, and uneasy compassion. But behind the symbol was Florence Owens Thompson, a real woman whose life was far more complex than the image America came to know.

In this episode, we look at how one photograph shaped public memory, what it reveals about documentary photography, and what happens when a person becomes an icon.

Send us a text

Don't miss the video podcast version on YouTube!!!

Follow & Subscribe to Art Happens

Connect with Us:
J-Squared Aterlier (J2Atelier)
🌐 Website: J2 Atelier
📸 Instagram: @J2Atelier
James William Moore
🌐 Website: James William Moore
📸 Instagram: @the_jwmartist

Catch Lattes & Art, our sister podcast—coffee-fueled conversations with artists about process, inspiration, and the beautiful mess behind the work.

You can find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, Amazon Music, and Buzzsprout