Daniel speaks with the pioneering US photographer, activist and UCLA Professor Catherine Opie, whose early portraits of her genderqueer community challenged homophobia and moral panic during the heightened atmosphere of the AIDS epidemic. Catherine has gone to become one of America's foremost contemporary fine art photographers. Binding Ties is the first survey of her work in Australia. Plus, meet a musician who improvises music to artworks she encounters at galleries and artists' studios.

Environmental artist Janet Laurence tells us the story behind her latest exhibition, based on life-changing trips to Antarctica and Iceland. Plus, fashion designer Kiel Rogers on why a sense of being 'anti-fashion' drives him. And what's happening with Melbourne's Nicholas Building? A plan to buy back the iconic artists' hub is now on hold, while the last remaining artist-run gallery in the building says it can't afford the rent. 

It’s  a bit like the art world State of Origin: two rival cities go head to head with big exhibitions showcasing the best of Australian contemporary art and design. The prize? Your attention, column inches, buzz and kudos. Daniel takes a tour of Melbourne Now and The National, held across Sydney's major galleries..

On this highlights episode of the show, Daniel speaks to guests Sally Scales and Nici Cumpston about the meteoric rise of the Pitjantjatjara artist Betty Muffler. Betty is a ngangkari (a traditional doctor) — a fact intrinsic to her work. Plus, we visit the studio of miniaturist Natasha Bieniek and speak to author Claire Roberts about the influence of China on the painter Ian Fairweather.

2023 is going to be the year of AI art. If you’ve been playing around with text-to-image apps like DALL-E 2 or Stable Diffusion, you know how remarkable the technology is and how fast it’s moving. UNSW AI Institute's Prof Toby Walsh talks about the history of artificial intelligence and art, artist Kim Leutwyler on the experience of having your artwork used to ‘train’ AI (without consent) and Rodolfo Ocampo sees a new type of hybrid artist emerging, as well as certain artforms completely transformed by AI. Plus, how does a 3D animator and digital native feel about the direction AI is set to play in the creative industries? 

What can a new Andy Warhol exhibition teach us about social media and the cult of celebrity? Plus, an artist spends a year working at a 1930s Georgian mansion in Adelaide, making artwork about its ecological footprint and storied art collection.

Hoda Afshar on the impact of protest art and photography in the Women, Life, Freedom uprising in Iran. Plus, the unconventional life of 19th Century painter Rosa Bonheur, and painter Marikit Santiago on ambition, conflicting identities and banana leaves.

On this episode, two artists and two very different takes on place and belonging. Callum Morton focuses on the built environment and Naomi Hobson is deeply embedded in the natural landscape.

Dylan Mooney's work celebrates young Black characters embodying queer love. And he does it in a bold, heartfelt graphic style that is proving irresistibly popular with audiences. Plus, Ali Tahayori on the poet Hafez, and creating art about queerness and otherness, through kaleidoscopic mirrors.

Jennifer Higgie talks about her new book on women artists and the spirit world. Plus, Daniel visits the largest collection of artworks by the Victorian medium Georgiana Houghton, held at a spiritualist church.