Forgotten Art History

Long before the Inca Empire, and centuries before European contact, ancient cultures along the coast and highlands of Peru were creating some of the most sophisticated art and ritual landscapes in the ancient world. In this episode, we explore Chavín, Nazca, and the Moche, three cultures whose monuments, ceramics, and sacred spaces reveal complex belief systems, political power, and deep connections to the environment. Often pushed to the margins of history by colonial narratives, these

In this episode of Forgotten Art History, we journey into the Kingdom of Benin to uncover the artistry, symbolism, and political power behind these masterpieces. We explore how the bronzes were created, what they meant to the people who crafted and cherished them, and how a brutal 1897 British invasion scattered them across museums around the globe.Today, the Benin Bronzes stand at the center of a global conversation about restitution, identity, and who gets to own the past. Join us as we trace

Stone and Story — The Legacy of Great ZimbabweDescription:For centuries, the towering stone walls of Great Zimbabwe have stood as silent witnesses to one of Africa’s greatest civilizations. Built by the ancestors of the Shona people between the 11th and 15th centuries, this remarkable city was a center of trade, religion, and royal power. It is also an architectural masterpiece long misrepresented by colonial myths.In this episode of Forgotten Art History, we uncover the true story of Great

Indigenous Australians have been creating art for over 40,000 years, making their rock art the world’s oldest continuous artistic tradition. But these works aren’t just beautiful images on stone. They’re sacred, living connections to land, ancestors, and community.In this episode of Forgotten Art History, we explore:* What Indigenous Australian rock art is and how it’s created* The deep symbolism behind motifs like hand stencils, animals, and ancestral beings* How layers of paintings across

Welcome to the very first episode of Forgotten Art History, a podcast that explores the stories, subjects, and ideas in art history that often get left behind.In this episode, we’re tackling one of the most important—and debated—concepts in the field: the art historical canon. What does it mean for a work of art to be considered “canonical”? Who gets to decide? And how has Western dominance, shaped by imperialism and colonization, influenced which artists and cultures are remembered, and which are