Sotheby's Talks

Sotheby's Talks

For almost three centuries, Sotheby’s has been the place to discover the greatest stories of creativity. We’ve been the temporary custodians of some of the world’s finest treasures, which you can see on display in our galleries on any given day. Sotheby’s Talks is the podcast that celebrates art, culture, and collecting. Featuring conversations with tastemakers, collectors and luminaries from the world of art and culture, this series invites you inside the world of Sotheby’s: a place where you can find the extraordinary – including contemporary art, Old Master paintings, rare books, jewellery, and memorabilia. Season 2, which focuses on legacy, features guests including Bella Freud, Joachim Pissarro, Paul Signac’s great granddaughter Charlotte Hellman and Claude Monet’s great-great grandson Philippe Piguet. To step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

Episodes

July 23, 2025 42 mins
On today’s episode, we turn our attention to women artists — and the shifting dynamics of their place in the art market. This conversation unpacks the key findings of our latest Insight Report, which explores the growing presence and influence of women artists in Modern and Contemporary art.   Joining the discussion are Anders Petterson, founder and managing director of ArtTactic and co-author of the report; Jenny Waldman, Direct...
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On today’s episode, we’re exploring the world of Shakespeare. Sam Leith, author, journalist and literary editor of The Spectator, will be joined by Emma Smith, Professor of Shakespeare Studies at Oxford, Tracy-Ann Oberman, who most recently starred as Shylock in her adaptation of The Merchant of Venice, and acclaimed actor Joseph Kloska. They will be revealing how different editions shaped our understanding of Shakespeare’s plays. ...
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In this episode, actor, filmmaker, musician and activist, Idris Elba discusses the influence and growth of African art and the creative industries on the global stage with host Alexis Akwagyiram, Managing Editor of Semafor Africa, Dana Enduno Ferriera, CEO and Founder of Pavillon54, a digital platform for sharing and promoting art from the African diaspora, and artist and art historian, Smooth Nwezi, a curator in the Department of ...
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Has London's cultural power essentially radiated outwards, influencing artists and creatives across the world? Or is London's creative preeminence dependent on the influx of global talent that has galvanised its artistic scene? In this panel discussion, curator and cultural historian Gus Casely-Hayford, journalist Dylan Jones, museum director Tim Marlow, Sotheby’s Europe chairman Helena Newman and artist Grayson Perry explore the i...
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London has long been a cultural melting pot for artists from around the world who, in their own unique ways, have revealed with each touch of a brush, the impact of the dynamic environment in which they found themselves. So in celebration of its role in the artistic journeys of so many, Sotheby’s has partnered with Art UK to showcase 12 extraordinary masterpieces by international artists on loan from regional museums across the UK....
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In celebration of Imaginary Conversations: An ERDEM Collection inspired by Duchess Deborah, join British fashion journalist Charlie Porter in conversation with Erdem Moralıoğlu, Creative Director of ERDEM, and Lady Burlington. Together they will discuss Moralıoğlu's creative process in designing a collection inspired by Duchess Deborah, drawing upon the historic textile collection and archives at Chatsworth House, as well as the cr...
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In this episode, writer, academic and critic Frances Wilson is joined by Artistic Director of Dior Homme and Vice President of Charleston, Kim Jones, Dr Darren Clarke, Head of Collections, Research and Exhibitions at Charleston and Sotheby’s, and Jen Hardie, Director and Senior Specialist in Modern British & Irish Art at Sotheby’s in London, for a conversation about the indefatigable spirit of the Bloomsbury group and the renewed i...
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With a rare first edition of William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and of Experience about to go under the hammer, in this episode a panel of experts have come together for a conversation about the poet, artist and visionary. Chair and cultural critic Shahidha Bari is joined by art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon, cultural historian John Higgs and Sotheby’s Selby Kiffer to explore the enduring legacy of this enigmatic genius, whose infl...
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In this episode, director of the National Portrait Gallery and trustee of Chatsworth House Trust, Nicholas Cullinan, is joined by Bella Freud, daughter of artist Lucian Freud, for a conversation that examines the stories behind three portraits of the Devonshire family painted by Lucian Freud. These include the famous ‘Woman in a White Shirt’, which marked a turning point in the artist’s style.  This podcast was originally recorded ...
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London has long been a cultural melting pot for artists from around the world who, in their own unique ways, have revealed with each touch of a brush, the impact of the dynamic environment in which they found themselves. So in celebration of its role in the artistic journeys of so many, Sotheby’s has partnered with Art UK to showcase 12 extraordinary masterpieces by international artists on loan from regional museums across the UK....
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Julianne Moore is one of our greatest living actors: an Academy and Emmy award winner, and the first American woman to be awarded top acting prizes at the Cannes, Berlin and Venice film festivals. She is also an avid collector. In this episode, Julianne joins curator and author Glenn Adamson, curator Dakin Hart, gallerist Jean-Gabriel Mitterrand, and Sotheby’s Florent Jeanniard, for a conversation about 20th Century designers, incl...
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In this episode, which was originally recorded as a live event, we are joined by two literary icons for a conversation about the beloved 19th-century novelist Jane Austen. Helen Fielding is the creator of the multi-million selling Bridget Jones novels and films, and Gill Hornby is the author of the bestselling Miss Austen, and The Story of Jane Austen. Along with Dr. Kalika Sands, a specialist from Sotheby’s Books and Manuscripts d...
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July 23, 2025 35 mins
Edvard Munch pioneered Expressionism and embraced life’s most painful experiences to create art: his pursuit of emotional truth changed art forever. Tracey Emin, who has been a major figure in contemporary art for more than 25 years, has always been fascinated by the Norwegian master and, in 2021, she exhibited 25 of her own works alongside Munch’s oils and watercolours at the Royal Academy. In this episode originally recorded at S...
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There has never been a better time than now for women working in art, fashion and design. But female artists, gallerists, and collectors have always shaped taste, pushed patriarchal boundaries, and challenged orthodoxies to find ways of expressing themselves and championing the work of others. In this episode, originally recorded as a live event, Will Gompertz was joined at Sotheby’s in London by jewellery designer Paloma Picasso, ...
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In this episode, Professor Shahidha Bari is joined by Christopher Rothko, custodian of the Rothko legacy, Dr David Anfam, curator and writer, and Lisa Dennison, Sotheby’s Chairman of the Americas for a conversation about The Rothko Chapel for an inside glimpse into the history of the chapel, its ambitions for the future and the part it plays in Rothko’s ongoing legacy. This podcast was originally recorded to mark the chapel’s 50th ...
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For millennia, female power has been portrayed, mediated and exerted through visual art. But to what extent have women been packaged to fit a male template? And how much have they been able to control their own image? In today’s episode, which was originally recorded as a live event at Sotheby’s in London, Sotheby’s specialist Holly Braine was joined by Britain’s best known classicist Mary Beard for a conversation about how Western...
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In this episode, Artistic Director of the Serpentine Galleries Hans Ulrich Obrist moderated a conversation between philanthropist and Creative Director of Lopud 1483 Francesca Thyssen-Bornemisza, artist Olafur Eliasson and President and CEO of World Monuments Fund Bénédicte de Montlaur. Together they discussed Francesca’s restoration of the 15th-Century Franciscan monastery Lopud 1483 in Croatia. They also talked about the relation...
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In this episode, originally recorded at Sotheby’s in London, award-winning singer-songwriter Celeste is joined by Sotheby’s Helena Newman for a conversation about female surrealist artists, including Leonor Fini and Leonora Carrington, and the profound impact that their work – and the surrealism movement more broadly – has had on design and culture over the decades.  To see the works discussed in this episode, or to watch an extend...
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Marina Abramović is one of our greatest living artists: an art world icon and a performance art pioneer. In 2023, Marina presented her solo exhibition After Life at the Royal Academy and  became the first female artist in the institution’s 250-year history to fill the entire gallery space with her art. Will Gompertz was joined by Sotheby’s Marina Ruiz Colomer and Marina Abramović for a conversation about her life and work, and what...
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The idea of the artist’s muse conjures up a glamorous but passive woman portrayed by a male artist. Yet many women who are commonly identified as muses have been talents in their own right; they are creatively inspired as well as sources of inspiration for others. In this episode, photographer Mary McCartney, Golden Lion prize-winning artist Sonia Boyce, and the Daily Telegraph’s fashion director Lisa Armstrong sat down at Sotheby’...
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