285: The Obsessive Passions and Parallels Between Art & Wine with Bianca Bosker, Author of Get the Picture and Cork Dork

Unreserved Wine Talk

Why are people with obsessive natures often drawn to both wine and art? How does strategic snobbery create deliberate barriers to entry into the art and wine worlds? What does it mean to stay in the work or to stay with the wine?

In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with author Bianca Bosker.

You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks

Giveaway

Three of you will win a copy of Bianca Bosker's terrific new book Get the Picture: A Mind-Bending Journey among the Inspired Artists and Obsessive Art Fiends Who Taught Me How to See. To qualify, all you have to do is email me at [e-mail] and let me know that you've posted a review of the podcast. I'll choose one person randomly from those who contact me. Good luck!

Highlights

Which cities has Bianca visited so far on her book tour?

What has Bianca found to be the top marketing strategies for her book?

Are art-world people more or less obsessive than wine-world people?

Why are people with obsessive natures drawn to art and wine?

How did getting into artists’ studios transform the way Bianca looks at art?

What does it mean to “stay in the work”?

How does strategic snobbery create deliberate barriers to entry into the art and wine industries?

Is there really a need for complex terminology and flowery language in describing wine?

How has art speak evolved to become less descriptive and more exclusionary?

Why does Bianca differentiate between the logic behind wine descriptions and art speak?

What’s behind the art world’s suspicion of beautiful things and are there parallels in the wine world?

How do art and wine help us to discover and appreciate beauty in the everyday?

Key Takeaways

Bianca observed an all-consuming passion and intensity in both worlds. As she says: "I'd never met a group of people willing to sacrifice so much for something of so little obvious practical value." They are both in their own way, hedonistic. They really sort of involve all of us - our minds, and our bodies.

Strategic snobbery creates deliberate barriers to entry into the art and wine worlds. Bianca explains that it exists to keep out the "Joe Schmoes." The language is one of these constructions that exists to distinguish you as someone that does or does not get it.

Bianca advises to slow down and absorb your experiences. It's also what I teach my online wine and food pairing students. Think about what you're experiencing and what you're tasting.

About Bianca Bosker

Bianca Bosker is the author of the New York Times bestselling books Get the Picture: A Mind-Bending Journey among the Inspired Artists and Obsessive Art Fiends Who Taught Me How to See and Cork Dork. A contributing writer at The Atlantic, she has also written for publications such as The New Yorker, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. Her work has been recognized with awards from the New York Press Club, the Society of Professional Journalists, and more, and has been included in The Best American Travel Writing.

To learn more, visit https://www.nataliemaclean.com/285.