Michael Lobel
@mlobelart.bsky.social
Professor of Art History, Hunter College & CUNY Graduate Center. I look at things and then write about them.
Author of Van Gogh and the End of Nature, from Yale University Press: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300274363/van-g
Author of Van Gogh and the End of Nature, from Yale University Press: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300274363/van-g
Pinned
Michael Lobel
@mlobelart.bsky.social
· Jun 25
I'm excited to share that today is the official publication date for my new book, Van Gogh and the End of Nature, from Yale University Press, which more firmly grounds Van Gogh within the industrial era in which he lived & worked (thread)
yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300...
yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300...
Whoever created the NY Times Spelling Bee puzzle obviously feeling pretty spicy today👀
January 6, 2026 at 2:25 PM
Whoever created the NY Times Spelling Bee puzzle obviously feeling pretty spicy today👀
William Blake's depiction of the Circle of Traitors in Hell from Dante's Inferno, 1827 www.artic.edu/artworks/233...
January 6, 2026 at 1:18 PM
William Blake's depiction of the Circle of Traitors in Hell from Dante's Inferno, 1827 www.artic.edu/artworks/233...
Among my many esoteric interests are shaped trompe l'oeil paintings like this one by 18th-century French painter François-Xavier Vispré (front & back shown below). I'm fascinated not only by the illusion but also by the care in creating an irregular shape to match the elements depicted
January 6, 2026 at 1:06 AM
Among my many esoteric interests are shaped trompe l'oeil paintings like this one by 18th-century French painter François-Xavier Vispré (front & back shown below). I'm fascinated not only by the illusion but also by the care in creating an irregular shape to match the elements depicted
Reposted by Michael Lobel
Lou Reed with Archie & Amos at Warhol's Factory, around 1976 or 1977
January 5, 2026 at 3:11 PM
Lou Reed with Archie & Amos at Warhol's Factory, around 1976 or 1977
Because everything kind of sucks you can watch this video about how they release 3,000 pounds of confetti in Times Square on New Year's Eve. Spoiler: it's all just people releasing it by hand..!
Who Releases 3,000 Pounds of Confetti on Times Square?
YouTube video by Joshua Charow
youtu.be
January 5, 2026 at 6:08 PM
Because everything kind of sucks you can watch this video about how they release 3,000 pounds of confetti in Times Square on New Year's Eve. Spoiler: it's all just people releasing it by hand..!
Jenny Holzer, "Private Property Created Crime" from the Truisms series, at least one version of which can be found in the Museum of Modern Art collection www.moma.org/collection/w...
January 5, 2026 at 4:41 PM
Jenny Holzer, "Private Property Created Crime" from the Truisms series, at least one version of which can be found in the Museum of Modern Art collection www.moma.org/collection/w...
Reposted by Michael Lobel
Current mood
Guyana Punch - The Judy's
YouTube video by Eaglebauer's Record Collection
youtu.be
January 4, 2026 at 12:56 PM
Current mood
Lately I'm not sure I have much to add to the general discourse on what ails the world, so maybe I'll just become an "artists & their pets" fan account..? Here's Andy Warhol with his beloved dachshund Archie in 1976
January 5, 2026 at 3:11 PM
Lately I'm not sure I have much to add to the general discourse on what ails the world, so maybe I'll just become an "artists & their pets" fan account..? Here's Andy Warhol with his beloved dachshund Archie in 1976
Reposted by Michael Lobel
Bricked over
Silverwood, MI
Silverwood, MI
January 4, 2026 at 8:15 PM
Bricked over
Silverwood, MI
Silverwood, MI
Reposted by Michael Lobel
With thanks to @peterhuestis.bsky.social for reminding us that today marks the birthday of the great queer modernist painter Marsden Hartley, I think you all deserve a thread of his sexiest beefcake paintings. First up, "Canuck Yankee Lumberjack at Old Orchard Beach, Maine," 1940
January 4, 2026 at 1:41 PM
With thanks to @peterhuestis.bsky.social for reminding us that today marks the birthday of the great queer modernist painter Marsden Hartley, I think you all deserve a thread of his sexiest beefcake paintings. First up, "Canuck Yankee Lumberjack at Old Orchard Beach, Maine," 1940
Reposted by Michael Lobel
on this sunday-est of sundays, syllabus-ing for a new term
you're not alone against the oligarch agenda of cognitive deskilling, data capture, surveillance, and bias:
we've got assignment ideas, memes, recommended readings, o' captain speeches, syllabus policies, and so much more against-a-i.com
you're not alone against the oligarch agenda of cognitive deskilling, data capture, surveillance, and bias:
we've got assignment ideas, memes, recommended readings, o' captain speeches, syllabus policies, and so much more against-a-i.com
AGAINST AI -
against-a-i.com
January 4, 2026 at 2:59 PM
on this sunday-est of sundays, syllabus-ing for a new term
you're not alone against the oligarch agenda of cognitive deskilling, data capture, surveillance, and bias:
we've got assignment ideas, memes, recommended readings, o' captain speeches, syllabus policies, and so much more against-a-i.com
you're not alone against the oligarch agenda of cognitive deskilling, data capture, surveillance, and bias:
we've got assignment ideas, memes, recommended readings, o' captain speeches, syllabus policies, and so much more against-a-i.com
"Creative Therapy," Jacob Lawrence's 1949 depiction of a painting class at the hospital where he spent the better part of a year undergoing psychiatric treatment www.clevelandart.org/art/1994.2
January 4, 2026 at 3:06 PM
"Creative Therapy," Jacob Lawrence's 1949 depiction of a painting class at the hospital where he spent the better part of a year undergoing psychiatric treatment www.clevelandart.org/art/1994.2
Thinking this morning of memorable exchange from recent Broadway production of Samuel D. Hunter's "Little Bear Ridge Road" between two main characters, writer Ethan & his aunt Sarah (latter played by the glorious Laurie Metcalf):
Ethan: "I hate this country!"
Sarah: "Trust me, it hates you more."
Ethan: "I hate this country!"
Sarah: "Trust me, it hates you more."
January 4, 2026 at 2:17 PM
Thinking this morning of memorable exchange from recent Broadway production of Samuel D. Hunter's "Little Bear Ridge Road" between two main characters, writer Ethan & his aunt Sarah (latter played by the glorious Laurie Metcalf):
Ethan: "I hate this country!"
Sarah: "Trust me, it hates you more."
Ethan: "I hate this country!"
Sarah: "Trust me, it hates you more."
With thanks to @peterhuestis.bsky.social for reminding us that today marks the birthday of the great queer modernist painter Marsden Hartley, I think you all deserve a thread of his sexiest beefcake paintings. First up, "Canuck Yankee Lumberjack at Old Orchard Beach, Maine," 1940
January 4, 2026 at 1:41 PM
With thanks to @peterhuestis.bsky.social for reminding us that today marks the birthday of the great queer modernist painter Marsden Hartley, I think you all deserve a thread of his sexiest beefcake paintings. First up, "Canuck Yankee Lumberjack at Old Orchard Beach, Maine," 1940
Current mood
Guyana Punch - The Judy's
YouTube video by Eaglebauer's Record Collection
youtu.be
January 4, 2026 at 12:56 PM
Current mood
"Both Lil Nas X and Peter Theil identify as gay, though they have no relationship."
NYT gonna NYT: "Both Mr. Mamdani and Mr. Maduro identify as socialists, though they have no relationship.” — would be funny if they did this every time you write about two capitalists.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/03/w...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/03/w...
Mamdani Called Trump to Criticize Venezuela Strikes
www.nytimes.com
January 3, 2026 at 10:30 PM
"Both Lil Nas X and Peter Theil identify as gay, though they have no relationship."
Reposted by Michael Lobel
"Diogenes with His Lantern Looking for an Honest Man," a painting by 17th-century Flemish artist Pieter van Mol
October 23, 2025 at 12:50 PM
"Diogenes with His Lantern Looking for an Honest Man," a painting by 17th-century Flemish artist Pieter van Mol
Because it's a tough news day & also #caturday, I feel like you all just need to know about Romare Bearden's cat, Gippo. Bearden, one of the leading American artists of the 20th century and a steadfast chronicler of Black life, had a cat named Gippo whom he clearly adored
January 3, 2026 at 7:15 PM
Because it's a tough news day & also #caturday, I feel like you all just need to know about Romare Bearden's cat, Gippo. Bearden, one of the leading American artists of the 20th century and a steadfast chronicler of Black life, had a cat named Gippo whom he clearly adored
Reposted by Michael Lobel
Elizabeth Catlett & Alberto Beltrán, Untitled (Composition for a Peace Poster), c. 1950 www.artic.edu/artworks/222...
January 3, 2026 at 10:11 AM
Elizabeth Catlett & Alberto Beltrán, Untitled (Composition for a Peace Poster), c. 1950 www.artic.edu/artworks/222...
Was reminded of this 1991 drawing by Sue Coe, "Demonstrator, Times Square"
January 3, 2026 at 6:53 PM
Was reminded of this 1991 drawing by Sue Coe, "Demonstrator, Times Square"
Reposted by Michael Lobel
one problem with learning is it will make you so angry at how stupid everything is
January 3, 2026 at 4:24 PM
one problem with learning is it will make you so angry at how stupid everything is
From my walk this morning: sunrise over 14th Street, NYC, January 3, 2025
January 3, 2026 at 5:27 PM
From my walk this morning: sunrise over 14th Street, NYC, January 3, 2025
Reposted by Michael Lobel
"The Generals," 1961-62, by Venezuelan-American artist Marisol buffaloakg.org/artworks/k19...
December 17, 2025 at 12:56 AM
"The Generals," 1961-62, by Venezuelan-American artist Marisol buffaloakg.org/artworks/k19...
Reposted by Michael Lobel
it is incredible that the entire high level legal apparatus of the United States is "anything that helps people is impossible, anything that kills people is permitted"
January 3, 2026 at 2:24 PM
it is incredible that the entire high level legal apparatus of the United States is "anything that helps people is impossible, anything that kills people is permitted"
Jenny Holzer, Truism: The Beginning of the War Will Be Secret, 1994
January 3, 2026 at 3:38 PM
Jenny Holzer, Truism: The Beginning of the War Will Be Secret, 1994