The Famous Painting Ape
<p>Congo, pet chimp of science writer and TV personality Desmond Morris, was considered a novelty in the art world when his paintings were displayed in the 1950’s. But, on 20th June, 2005, three of his works went under the hammer at prestigious London auction house Bonham’s - and sold for £12,000.</p><br><p>Morris - zoologist, surrealist and author of the bestselling science book <em>The Naked Ape</em> - had the perfect experience to support the monkey in his artistic career, and was rewarded when his chimp’s paintings were displayed at the ICA, lauded by Dali, and purchased by Prince Philip.&nbsp;</p><br><p>In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how Congo’s approach to art differentiated him from other primates; question whether Morris really was truly able to determine, as he claimed, that financial reward ruins artistic impulses; and reveal how Congo’s status as the world’s most advanced painting ape might soon be under threat…&nbsp;</p><br><p><strong>Further Reading:</strong></p><p>• ‘Bidders go ape for chimpanzee art’ (BBC News, 2005): <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4109664.stm" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4109664.stm</a></p><p>• ‘Congo and the ‘Biology of Art’’ (Zoological Society of London, 2021): <a href="https://www.zsl.org/blogs/artefact-of-the-month/congo-and-the-biology-of-art" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.zsl.org/blogs/artefact-of-the-month/congo-and-the-biology-of-art</a></p><p>• ‘Meridian Tonight: Desmond Morris and surrealist art ‘ (ITV, 2012)</p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvzGV3LnWIE" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvzGV3LnWIE</a></p><br><p><br></p><p><strong>For bonus material and to support the show, visit</strong><a href="https://create.acast.com/episodes/ca1f94a1-0921-446a-ae00-4d4bfd2ba3ef/Patreon.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="http://patreon.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Patreon.com/Retrospectors</strong></a></p><p><strong>We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:</strong><a href="https://create.acast.com/episodes/ca1f94a1-0921-446a-ae00-4d4bfd2ba3ef/podfollow.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="http://podfollow.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>podfollow.com/Retrospectors</strong></a></p><br><p><em>The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.</em></p><p><em>Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.</em></p><p><em>Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.</em></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>
Today In History with The Retrospectors
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Show Notes
Congo, pet chimp of science writer and TV personality Desmond Morris, was considered a novelty in the art world when his paintings were displayed in the 1950’s. But, on 20th June, 2005, three of his works went under the hammer at prestigious London auction house Bonham’s - and sold for £12,000.
Morris - zoologist, surrealist and author of the bestselling science book The Naked Ape - had the perfect experience to support the monkey in his artistic career, and was rewarded when his chimp’s paintings were displayed at the ICA, lauded by Dali, and purchased by Prince Philip.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how Congo’s approach to art differentiated him from other primates; question whether Morris really was truly able to determine, as he claimed, that financial reward ruins artistic impulses; and reveal how Congo’s status as the world’s most advanced painting ape might soon be under threat…
Further Reading:
• ‘Bidders go ape for chimpanzee art’ (BBC News, 2005): http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4109664.stm
• ‘Congo and the ‘Biology of Art’’ (Zoological Society of London, 2021): https://www.zsl.org/blogs/artefact-of-the-month/congo-and-the-biology-of-art
• ‘Meridian Tonight: Desmond Morris and surrealist art ‘ (ITV, 2012)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvzGV3LnWIE
For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/Retrospectors
We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors
The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.
Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.
Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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