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Pop of Culture

Indiana Public Radio

Pop of Culture explores the vibrant cultural scene of East Central Indiana. Join hosts Jennifer Blackmer, Michelle Kinsey, and Dr. Kara DuQuette as they delve into regional arts, showcase local events, and engage in insightful conversations with artists and curators. From small business spotlights to in-depth art analyses, Pop of Culture aims to amplify the voices of Indiana's artistic community, enriching lives with the diverse spirit of our state.

© 2024, Ball State University and Indiana Public Radio.

Pop of Culture explores the vibrant cultural scene of East Central Indiana. Join hosts Jennifer Blackmer, Michelle Kinsey, and Dr. Kara DuQuette as they delve into regional arts, showcase local events, and engage in insightful conversations with artists and curators. From small business spotlights to in-depth art analyses, Pop of Culture aims to amplify the voices of Indiana's artistic community, enriching lives with the diverse spirit of our state.

© 2024, Ball State University and Indiana Public Radio.
51hr 48min
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Two stories of steel: the Muncie Fencing Club, and a local metal artist!
May 1, 202656min 3sec81.57 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E21 - We Come from the Ground Up".
An encore edition with some of our favorite segments from seasons past!
May 29, 202654min 24sec79.24 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E20 - We're in Cowboy Couture".
This episode is the one time we'd wear a suit.
May 22, 202648min 7sec70.2 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E19 - We Tell an Untold Story".
In a Conversation Between the Coasts, we learn about the rise and fall of a forgotten American hero.
May 15, 202648min 14sec70.35 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E18 - We Insult the French".
May 8, 202648min 26sec70.6 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E16 - We Get the Sensation of Summer".
An encore edition with some of our favorite segments from seasons past!
April 24, 202648min 21sec70.46 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E15 - We Find Joy".
A memoirist and a musician take us on their journey to joy.
April 17, 202648min 38sec70.88 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E14 - We Do Duos".
We talk to two sets of artists that have teamed up... along with all the usual Pop talk!
April 10, 202652min 40sec76.69 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E13 - We Ready Our Tastebuds".
The Pop Team does a culinary episode (except for one segment)!
April 3, 202645min 34sec66.43 MB
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We're still recovering after our 100th episode celebration—enjoy some of our favorite segments from seasons past!
March 27, 202648min 16sec70.29 MB
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It's Pop of Culture's 100th episode!
March 20, 202650min 26sec73.42 MB
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We're celebrating our 100th episode in style!
March 19, 202629sec893.94 kB
Thumbnail for "S03 E10 - We Get All C's".
We're back on the poetry circuit... and catching up with "Cats!"
March 13, 202648min 16sec70.28 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E09 - We Survive the Wintering".
We spring into a show with poetry, illustration, the Oscars, and young artist exhibitions!
March 6, 202652min 13sec75.95 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E08 - We Have "Balls Balls Balls"".
Our Conversations Between the Coasts is back to play ball!
February 27, 202647min 34sec69.24 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E07 - We Put Ourselves on the Map".
Everybody's coming to ECI, so we saved you a seat up front!
February 20, 202648min 4sec69.95 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E06 - We Take a Dive Into the Archives".
An encore edition with some of our favorite recent interviews!
February 13, 202649min 37sec72.17 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E05 - We Build a Bakery".
Pastries, games, a musical trio... Pop is a party this week!
February 6, 202648min 13sec70.12 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E04 - We Reflect on the Banks of the Tallahatchie".
71 years after the brutal murder of Emmett Till, a visiting exhibition explores the enduring legacy of his death and his mother Mamie Till-Mobley's courage.
January 30, 202648min 4sec69.9 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E03 - We Wreck Your Heart".
We learn about two singer-songwriters—one real, one fictional.
January 23, 202650min 49sec73.83 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E02 - We Hit a Pothole".
Punk, portraits, passports... it's all in this week's episode!
January 16, 202646min 18sec67.3 MB
Thumbnail for "S03 E01 - We Get Our Glass in Gear".
We press play on Season 3 of Pop of Culture!
January 9, 202647min 55sec69.6 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E44 - We Look Back at the Best of 2025".
The last episode of Season 2 is a retrospective!
January 2, 202648min 39sec70.69 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E43 - We Predict a Vacation".
It's our last episode of 2025, and we got three very special interviews!
November 26, 202549min 8sec71.35 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E42 - We Might Need Subtitles".
Almost ten different art forms in under an hour... just another episode of Pop of Culture!
November 21, 202548min 42sec70.7 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E41 - We're Visionaries".
From hip-hop to adoption, all in 50 minutes or less!
November 14, 202547min 57sec69.6 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E40 - We Think People Make Place".
This week, artists reflecting their communities!
November 7, 202548min 21sec70.2 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E39 - We Decorate for Halloween".
An encore episode with some of our favorite frights!
October 31, 202546min 5sec66.9 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E38 - We Hear Diversity in Sound".
Musicians, actors, writers, sculptors... it's all in the latest episode of Pop!
October 24, 202544min 45sec64.99 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E37 - We Do a Cannonball (Into Leaves)".
We fall into the latest episode of Pop of Culture.
October 17, 202548min 21sec70.16 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E36 - We Add a Pop of Color, a Pop of Music, and a Pop Host".
We talk to arts organizations—and muralists painting a bus!
October 10, 202552min 17sec75.8 MB
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A clay conference, brothers doing set design, and tiny paintings of Indianapolis!
October 3, 202547min 29sec68.88 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E34 - We Go Through the Village and Into the Woods".
An encore edition with some of our favorite recent interviews!
September 26, 202542min 18sec61.39 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E33 - We're on Location".
We hit up Seattle, Jay County, and locations around Muncie for the best in arts & culture!
September 19, 202548min 44sec70.66 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E32 - We Pull Out Our Pocket Constitutions".
We lean into the "cultural side" of arts & culture.
September 12, 202547min 58sec69.56 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E31 - We Find New Harmonies".
One Indiana arts organization moves forward without funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.
September 5, 202547min 41sec69.15 MB
Thumbnail for "S2E30 - We're Hooked on Butter".
Some of the best bits and bobs from Season 2!
August 29, 202547min 38sec69.06 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E29 - We Can't Stop the Beat".
A music-focused rendition of Pop of Culture!
August 22, 202550min 50sec73.68 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E28 - We Step Into a Foggy Future".
This week we listen back to some of our favorite recent interviews!
August 15, 202548min 7sec69.74 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E27 - We're Not Afraid of the Dark".
We grab a flashlight and head into the dark for this week's episode!
August 8, 202548min 26sec70.2 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E26 - We Tell the Half Truth".
Pop of Culture returns!
August 1, 202547min 42sec69.13 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E25 - We're Working On a Summer Vacation".
A special encore edition to celebrate our 70th show!
June 27, 202570.93 MB
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Pop of Culture looks forward to summer!
June 20, 202547min 52sec69.34 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E23 - We Have Someone to Be".
A cartoonist, a jazz expert, and an essay writer walk into a podcast...
June 13, 202536min 12sec52.52 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E22 - We Have the Clay Olympics".
Local music, local pottery, and "WAYWO!"
June 6, 202547min 50sec69.27 MB
Thumbnail for "S2E21 - We Aim for the Stars and Land Among the Alligators".
Some of our favorite recent interviews in an encore edition of Pop of Culture!
May 30, 202547min 43sec69.09 MB
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With speak with two different musicians performing in ECI, and we have our regular Book Club meeting!
May 23, 202553min 15sec77.05 MB
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We go behind the scenes of two annual events in East Central Indiana!
May 16, 202548min 14sec69.81 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E18 - We Go Into the Void".
A flower festival and doom metal... sounds like Pop of Culture!
May 9, 202548min 35sec70.3 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E17 - We Make A Stained Glass Dachshund".
We look into the art of stained glass!
May 2, 202549min 30sec71.62 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E16 - We're in Beautiful Luxurious Muncie".
We talk to the man behind viral internet character "Ray Toffer!"
April 25, 202548min 28sec70.13 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E15 - We Decide That It's Springtime".
A plant-themed encore edition!
April 18, 202547min 38sec68.93 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E14 - We Enter a Contest".
We're all in on NPR's Tiny Desk!
April 11, 202552min 31sec75.95 MB
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We talk to artists from all over ECI—and one from Las Vegas!
April 4, 202548min 19sec69.92 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E12 - We Write by the Seat of Our Pants".
An encore episode with some of our favorite recent interviews.
March 28, 202547min 34sec68.83 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E11 - We're on the Move".
We "move" Broadway from New York to Indianapolis and we "groove" with an upcoming dance performance.
March 21, 202548min 49sec70.62 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E10 - We’re In Print and In Portraiture".
We jump through different mediums to learn what's happening in ECI!
March 14, 202547min 50sec69.19 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E09 - We Talk Bookbinding, Banjo, and Beautiful Things".
A 'B'-themed episodes with artists on their 'A' game!
March 7, 202551min 11sec74.02 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E08 - We Show and Share".
We talk to artists at the top of their game in ECI!
February 28, 202548min 12sec69.71 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E07 - We Work on Our Timing".
An encore episode with some of our favorite recent interviews.
February 21, 202549min 46sec71.95 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E06 - We Cut a Rug".
We hear original music, see rug artwork, and learn about a "maker force."
February 14, 202550min 16sec72.66 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E05 - We Work from a Tiny Desk".
We pop up around ECI to get the latest from local artists!
February 7, 202547min 49sec69.13 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E04 - We Come Out of Retirement".
We talk to two longtime artists in East Central Indiana in their next act!
January 31, 202547min 49sec69.11 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E03 - We Start a Business".
An encore episode with some of our favorite recent interviews.
January 24, 202547min 24sec68.5 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E02 - We Stop and Smell the Flowers".
An in-depth Conversation with PBS host J Schwanke!
January 17, 202548min 5sec69.49 MB
Thumbnail for "S02 E01 - We Go Down the Street to Reach the Stars".
We visit the largest planetarium (by dome height) in the state of Indiana!
January 10, 202548min 6sec69.5 MB
Thumbnail for "Pop of Culture Promo".
IPR’s weekly radio program that amplifies the voices of East Central Indiana’s artistic community
January 29, 202459sec1.45 MB

S03 E17 - We Cross Blades

Thumbnail for "S03 E17 - We Cross Blades".
May 1, 202656min 3sec

This week, we join a Fencing Club class at Cornerstone Center for the Arts in Muncie! Instructor Christian Achgill (and his intermediate-level students) take Michelle and Jen through the basics—culminating in a back-and-forth bout!

Also in the show: we talk to metal artist Tracy Davidson, who's made sculptures as big as trees and as small as earrings; she explains how she started jewelry-making as a form of pain management. We'll hear three local musicians (Laura Switzer, Cari Cambridge, and Foxxy) go Behind the Song. And, "WAYWO" takes us onto the stage with Zeus Currie!

Transcript

Thumbnail for "S03 E17 - We Cross Blades".
S03 E17 - We Cross Blades
00:00
56:03