To mark Bonfire Night in the UK, this bonus episode of The Art Newspaper takes a look at the history of pyrotechnics in art and wider visual culture. We talk to Simon Werrett, the author of the book Fireworks: Pyrotechnic Arts and Sciences in European History, and he talks about the variety of uses of fireworks over the centuries and the differing ways that artists have depicted them. You can see some of the art discussed in the podcast here.
The Art Newspaper Podcast is available every Friday on our website and all the usual places where you find podcasts including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iTunes, Soundcloud and TuneIn. This podcast is brought to you in association with Bonhams, auctioneers since 1793 bonhams.com.
For more on this subject read Simon Werrett’s book: Fireworks: Pyrotechnic Arts and Sciences in European History, University of Chicago Press, 376pp, $58.