Art History Happy Hour

Dr. Sarah C. Schaefer, an assistant professor of art history at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Dr. Tina Rivers Ryan, an assistant curator at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, bring genuine academic credentials to a format that feels more like a spirited after-work conversation than a lecture. Art History Happy Hour tackles the kind of topics that spark real debate: immersive Van Gogh experiences (are they art or spectacle?), NFTs and cryptoart, fascist aesthetics, Suprematism, conservation ethics, and the cultural politics of public memorials. With 34 episodes and a 4.3-star rating from 147 reviewers, the show does not shy away from taking positions. Sarah and Tina clearly enjoy disagreeing with each other, and that friction produces some of the most intellectually honest discussions in the art podcast space. The academic tone is a feature, not a bug -- if you want substantive analysis from people who actually teach and curate for a living, this delivers. The main caveat is the release schedule, which has been sporadic with multiple hiatuses over the years. Some listeners have also found certain episodes lean toward elitism, though others see that as refreshing directness. When the show is firing, it offers something genuinely different: two experts who respect their audience enough to assume you can keep up.