Nell Painter: Old in Art School

The guest on this episode of Inquiry is Professor NELL IRVIN PAINTER. She is the Edwards Professor of American History at Princeton University and author of such critically-acclaimed books as The History of White People. At the peak of her career, and into her sixties, Professor Painter decided to go to art school. Not just to dabble, but to complete rigorous BFA and MFA programs. Her new book is a memoir of those experiences and how her art evolved. OLD IN ART SCHOOL: A MEMOIR OF STARTING OVER is one of the most honest and compelling books on art and art education to be published in quite some time.  (detail of her work “Plantains” on left)