The Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art is set to reopen to the public on June 3, following a 14-month closure due to the pandemic.  

On this month’s episode, the museum’s founding director, Rachel Teagle, discusses the four new exhibitions on display: “Wayne Thiebaud Influencer: A New Generation,” “Working Proof: Wayne Thiebaud as Printmaker,” “Andrea Bowers: Education Should Be Free” and “Arnold Joseph Kemp: I would survive. I could survive. I should survive.”

Teagle also discusses the importance of Thiebaud’s work, the pandemic-related challenges the museum staff overcame and how the museum used the yearlong closure to deeply examine issues of diversity, equity and inclusion in every aspect of its operation.

The Backdrop podcast is a monthly interview program featuring conversations with UC Davis scholars and researchers working in the social sciences, humanities, arts and culture. It is available free, on demand at Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Stitcher, Amazon Music, YouTube and Spotify. The Backdrop is hosted by public radio veteran Soterios Johnson.