Shows
The SpecialistCreative London: An Artistic Crossroads, with Grayson PerryHas London's cultural power essentially radiated outwards, influencing artists and creatives across the world? Or is London's creative preeminence dependent on the influx of global talent that has galvanised its artistic scene? In this panel discussion, curator and cultural historian Gus Casely-Hayford, journalist Dylan Jones, museum director Tim Marlow, Sotheby’s Europe chairman Helena Newman and artist Grayson Perry explore the importance of cultural exchange, regardless of its origin, in shaping London's rise as a creative powerhouse.This podcast was recorded at Sotheby’s London in June 2024. And, to step further into the world of Sothe...2025-06-1856 min
Time TeamThe Bronze Age object nobody can explainArchaeologist Dr Helen Geake and co-host Martyn Williams are joined by Gus Casely-Hayford OBE to answer your archaeology questions. You’ll learn the difference between coring and flotation, find out what commercial archaeology units do, debate the benefits of using plaster casts over a more technological solution and there’s another theory on Roman stairs to ponder.
Helen’s find this episode is a penannular ring, which you can have a look at here:
https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/978770. You’ll find out how it’s been baffling historians for decades!
Plus, Gus shares...2025-04-0837 min
Start the WeekWriting and rewriting historyHistory was written down for the very first time in the ancient region of Mesopotamia. In Between Two Rivers, Moudhy Al-Rashid tells the story of the civilisations that rose and fell, through the details left on cuneiform tablets from 4000 years ago – from diplomatic letters to receipts for beer. And the drive that led ancient scribes to record the events and legends of the past.Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus was probably born in AD69, and although little is known about his own life, his biography of the twelve Caesars vividly captured what it was like to be at the ce...2025-02-1742 min
The Week in ArtEpisode 300! British Museum, Tate Modern and V&A East directors in discussionUK museums are at a moment of transformation with a new generation of directors taking the helm at several of the major national institutions in London. So for this landmark 300th episode, we felt it was a good moment to look at the challenges and opportunities for museums now and in the future. We invited Gus Casely-Hayford of V&A East, Nicholas Cullinan of the British Museum and Karin Hindsbo of Tate Modern to join our host Ben Luke for a wide-ranging discussion.LAST CHANCE subscription offer: get three months for just £1/$1/€1. Choose between our print and...2024-11-1558 min
Intelligence SquaredSotheby's Talks – Creative London: An Artistic Crossroads, with Grayson PerryHas London's cultural power essentially radiated outwards, influencing artists and creatives across the world? Or is London's creative preeminence dependent on the influx of global talent that has galvanised its artistic scene? In this panel discussion, curator and cultural historian Gus Casely-Hayford, journalist Dylan Jones, museum director Tim Marlow, Sotheby’s Europe chairman Helena Newman and artist Grayson Perry explore the importance of cultural exchange, regardless of its origin, in shaping London's rise as a creative powerhouse.This podcast was recorded at Sotheby’s London in June 2024. And, to step further into the world of Sothe...2024-06-241h 02
Intelligence Squared: Arts & CultureSotheby's Talks – Creative London: An Artistic Crossroads, with Grayson PerryHas London's cultural power essentially radiated outwards, influencing artists and creatives across the world? Or is London's creative preeminence dependent on the influx of global talent that has galvanised its artistic scene? In this panel discussion, curator and cultural historian Gus Casely-Hayford, journalist Dylan Jones, museum director Tim Marlow, Sotheby’s Europe chairman Helena Newman and artist Grayson Perry explore the importance of cultural exchange, regardless of its origin, in shaping London's rise as a creative powerhouse.This podcast was recorded at Sotheby’s London in June 2024. And, to step further into the world of Sothe...2024-06-2456 min
Glocal CitizensEpisode 202: Creating New Ecologies of Knowledge with Nana Oforiatta AyimGreetings Glocal Citizens!
This week’s guest is fast becoming a cultural icon across her chosen disciplines. Ghanaian by ancestry and born in German and spending a formative part of her life in England, Nana Oforiatta Ayim is a writer, filmmaker, and art historian. She is Founder of the ANO Institute of Arts and Knowledge, through which she has pioneered a Pan-African Cultural Encyclopaedia, a Mobile Museums Project, and curated Ghana’s first pavilion at the Venice Biennale. She published her first novel The God Child in 2019, and in German in 2021. She has made award-winning films for muse...2023-12-1850 min
Career in RuinsS6 Ep3: An inspirational careerCareer in ruins are back in the saddle with their traditional interview format at the start of a very exciting new season. To kick us off we chat to the inspirational Gus Casely-Hayford, Director of the V&A East, and all round incredible person. We gain an insight into the motivation and application that has lead him to have such an incredible career in ruins.
Catch Gus’s latest Radio series, Torn, on BBC Sounds https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/m001bbpf
2023-11-0348 min
Aspen UKDesigning for Diversity: The ArtsArt is often seen as a medium for self-expression, a place for artists and creatives to share their personal experiences, and so offers a unique opportunity for cultural exchange. Yet, as we live in increasingly multi-cultural societies, artistic influences and sources are becoming more various and plural – so the urgent question is how do we navigate celebrating other cultures without crossing the line of cultural appropriation? What is the definition of ‘high culture’ in the UK – and is it changing? And how do we ensure artistic work is celebrated and valued equally, regardless of its cultural origins?This eve...2023-04-141h 00
BBI You're On MuteLord Hastings & Gus Casely-Hayford OBE, Director of Victoria & Albert East In the first episode of season 2 of ‘You’re On Mute’, Lord Michael Hastings is joined by Gus Casely-Hayford OBE, British curator, cultural historian, broadcaster and Director of V&A East, where they discuss Gus’s passion and dedication to showcasing African history on the global stage through art, music and culture. Gus gives us insights into his early life, from his family moving over to the UK from Sierra Leone and Nigeria in the 1960’s, to discovering his artistic interests at a young age through his brothers. All of which have contributed to a successful...2022-10-2647 min
TornAir JordansIt's 1985. Nike is hoping to finally get a foot into the world of basketball. They're gearing up for a new release of basketball boots that 21-year-old rookie Michael Jordan wears during a pre-season match for the Chicago Bulls. The National Basketball Association then tries to ban the trainers on the basis that they break the league’s rule stipulating that players must wear shoes that are either 51% black or 51% white.
In the tenth episode of Torn, Gus Casely-Hayford tells the story of how Nike’s response kickstarts a revolution in trainers that turns a simple sports shoe into o...2022-08-3015 minTornRay-BanIn 1920, during a record-breaking test flight in a single-engine fighter plane, things almost went fatally wrong for the pilot Major Rudolph 'Shorty' Schroeder. He lost consciousness but came round just in time to land at McCook Airport in Ohio State. When his colleague Lieutenant John MacReady pulled him out of the cockpit, he was shocked to see that Major Schroeder’s eyeballs had frozen. It was the catalyst that led Lieutenant MacReady to embark on a mission to help design protective eyewear for military pilots that resulted in Ray-Ban Aviator sunglasses.
In the ninth episode of Torn Gus Casely-Hayford ch...2022-08-2915 minTornMiniskirtIt's 1965 and London is about to become the capital of cool. Designer Mary Quant is watching the fashionable girls of Chelsea go by from the window of her shop, Bazaar. Their hemlines seem to be getting shorter and shorter. Inspired, Mary gets to work and what she comes up with many will find deeply shocking. It’s the miniskirt.In episode eight of Torn, Gus Casely-Hayford finds that media, society and feminists can never agree on whether the miniskirt is a good thing. Fashion historian Valerie Steele draws parallels with the 1920s when feminist disagreed ov...2022-08-2915 minTornFisherman SweaterFisherman sweaters have been part of fishing communities around the world for centuries. They're knitted with wool, often with unique and intricate designs, and can take more than a hundred hours to make.In episode seven of Torn, Gus Casely-Hayford sets out to discover if it's possible for traditional clothing to live on in a world where machines manufacture clothing at record speeds and record low prices. The story begins in the early 1900s off the Isle of Lewis in the Scottish Hebrides with two fishermen clad in traditional woollen sweaters known there as ganseys...2022-08-2914 minTornReadymade SuitIt's 1848 and a London-based company is changing the way that clothes are made and sold. E Moses and Son operate out of striking buildings across the capital. Men from all points of the compass are converging on the store with one thing in mind. They want a suit.
In episode six of Torn, Gus Casely-Hayford finds that quick returns, division of labour, economies of scale and thoughtful innovative investment in advertising are among what will shape the history and present of low cost fashion. While there is no evidence that E Moses and Son used sweat...2022-08-2914 minTornViscose RayonIt's 1924 and the young Russian graduate Alexis Sommaripa, like so many migrants to the United States in the period, is looking for something new. He takes a job with a company that’s been in the viscose rayon business for about five years but wants to figure out how to sell it. He finds out that women want it to be less shiny and more soft.In episode five of Torn, Gus Casely-Hayford follows the astronomical rise of Sommaripa - from fleeing the Bolsheviks during Russia’s revolution to becoming a key player in the production of visc...2022-08-2214 minTornMauve ManiaIt’s 1856 in London, and 18-year-old William Perkin is in the search for a cure to malaria when he stumbles upon something else. At the bottom of his test tube he sees a reddish lump. He dips cloth into it and discovers a purple dye. He becomes the first person to successfully market synthetic dyes. Gus Casely-Hayford tells the story of the craze that follows, nicknamed “mauve mania”. It starts with a purple dress worn by Queen Victoria and filters down to the masses who, until this point, did not have access to rich coloured dyes. Before Perkin...2022-08-2214 minTornWax PrintThe story of wax print fabric begins not in Africa where the fabric is adored today, but on the island of Java in Indonesia. That’s because, in the 18th century, a Dutch entrepreneur Pieter Fentener van Vlissingen received a curious piece of cloth from his uncle who lived on Java. It had been dyed by a Javanese artisan using a nibbed bamboo stick to create imperfect lines and dots that are set to the fabric with beeswax. Pieter sets about mechanising the technique and finds buyers in West and Central Africa.In the third episode of To...2022-08-2214 minTornIndian chintz dressIt's 1786 in Alexandria, Virginia. An argument breaks out at the market between a black woman enslaved on George Washington’s plantation and a white woman who believes she has stolen her dress made of fine Indian chintz fabric. What the encounter reveals is a complex pattern of hierarchy within fashion and stylistic expression in which black Americans have struggled to gain recognition for centuries.In the second episode of Torn, Gus-Casely-Hayford explores letters and extracts from the diaries of George Washington to understand the interwoven histories of both slavery and textiles in America. By the la...2022-08-2215 minTornCalico cottonGus Casely-Hayford tells the story of how calico cotton first grown in India gave rise to the global trade of a fabric that is both contentious and revolutionary.It’s 1719 and the vitriolic words of weaver-turned-activist Claudius Rey penned in his book condemning the “evil” import of cheap calico cotton from British-ruled India help pour fuel on the fire of civil unrest. The British parliament responds by introducing various amendments to the Calico Act aimed at protecting owners and workers in Britain’s textile industry. This has the knock on effect of crippling India’s weavers by...2022-08-2214 min
Front RowShelea, Reviewing Official Competition and Red Rose, Gus Casely-HayfordThe BBC Proms is celebrating what would’ve been Aretha Franklin’s 80th birthday, and leading the tribute is American singer-songwriter Sheléa. She's a protegee of Quincy Jones who also found a mentor in Stevie Wonder, and names Natalie Cole and Whitney Houston as some of her inspirations. Sheléa shares Aretha Franklin’s influences of gospel, jazz and soul, and her skills to play the piano and turn her voice to a variety of styles. She performs live in the studio and demonstrates the power of Aretha’s voice as well as her own.For our Thursd...2022-08-1842 minTornIntroducing TornGus Casely-Hayford unpicks the hidden histories behind what we wear by exploring 10 key moments in fashion spanning the globe and five centuries. From the start of the global trade in cotton, to the accidental invention of artificial dyes to Nike Air Jordans, Casely-Hayford reveals the historical weight we carry through our clothes and the statements we make just by getting dressed in the morning.A Novel production for BBC Radio 4.2022-08-1503 min
The Fitzwilliam Museum PodcastsPhysical/ VirtualDigital technologies are continually changing the way we engage with and relate to physical objects. In this episode of What Are Museums For?, Fitzwilliam Museum Director Luke Syson and Athena Art Foundation Director Nicola Jennings are joined by Alayo Akinkugbe, Dr Gus Casely-Hayford OBE and Daniel Pett, to discuss the current digital opportunities around museum collections and engagement. What role can virtual exhibitions play in connecting people to collections? How might digital and physical approaches be combined to generate new layers of meaning? How can social media help us to tell different stories and engage younger audiences? This podcast...2022-02-2435 min
Athena Art FoundationWhat Are Museums For? - Physical/DigitalDigital technologies are continually changing the way we engage with and relate to physical objects. In this episode of What Are Museums For?, Fitzwilliam Museum Director Luke Syson and Athena Art Foundation Director Nicola Jennings are joined by Alayo Akinkugbe, Dr Gus Casely-Hayford OBE and Daniel Pett, to discuss the current digital opportunities around museum collections and engagement. What role can virtual exhibitions play in connecting people to collections? How might digital and physical approaches be combined to generate new layers of meaning? How can social media help us to tell different stories and engage younger audiences?2022-02-2135 min
Hands and HammerPower of NarrativeWhat is a narrative and why does it matter? In this episode I discuss the idea of a narrative and the many things it might be capable of. This includes aspects of history, culture, medicine, and beyond. I think the concepts I cover in this episode are important and will be deeply reflected in future episodes.
Things I mentioned in the episode:
Gus Casely-Hayford's Ted Talk "The powerful stories that shaped Africa":https://youtu.be/hfznpykprP0
Matthew Sanford's interview on the podcast On Being: https://onbeing.org/programs/matthew-sanford-the-bodys-grace-2/
The Thinking...2022-02-0315 min
Listen HereListen Here: Future of Art and CultureIn our final episode of the series, host Amit and Gavin Poole sit down with Tim Reeve, Deputy Director & COO of V&A and Gus Casely-Hayford, the V&A East’s first director, to discuss bringing the V&A East to East London, the future of design and technology, and the hope to inspire the next generation in the community.2021-09-0834 minFront RowMark-Anthony Turnage, V&A East, Patricia LockwoodComposer and Arsenal fan Mark-Anthony Turnage will be setting a football game to music. Not just any game, but Arsenal’s title-winning 1989 final game of the season. He tells fellow fan John Wilson how he’ll be capturing the game in his piece Up for Grabs, which has its world premiere at the Barbican in London in November.As the V&A announce their plans for V&A East - two major new developments in the former London Olympic Park – which will open in 2024, its director Gus Casely-Hayford explains what they’re setting out to create and his visi...2021-06-3028 min
Gresham College LecturesSilence, and the Dynamising of African Creative ResistanceIn the face of enslavement, colonialism and cultural suppression, peoples of African descent have fought to maintain cherished cultural practices. Dr Gus Casely-Hayford, the new Director of V&A East, tells the story of how that resistance came to inspire the creation of some of the most dynamic artistic practice of the modern age.A lecture by Guy Casely-Hayford 15 OctoberThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/african-resistanceGresham College has been giving free public lectures...2020-10-1557 min
1-54 Forum1-54 Directors Talk London 2019 | Supporting African and Diaspora Artists1-54 London3 - 6 October 2019Directors Talk: Supporting African and Diaspora Artists An opportunity to hear from directors at the forefront of institutions championing African and diaspora artists both on the continent, and internationally. Gus Casely-Hayford (Smithsonian National Museum of African Art), Koyo Kouoh (Zeitz MOCAA), Sonia Lawson (Le Palais de Lomé) and Othman Lazraq (MACAAL) are joined by moderator Rebecca Anne Proctor (Editor-in-Chief of Harper’s Bazaar Art) Image: © Katrina Sorrentino www.1-54.com2019-10-081h 43
SidedoorGood as GoldGlittering treasures, gleaming coins, and eye-catching jewelry…gold can be all of these things, but in some parts of the world it's also an enduring link to the past. Gus Casely-Hayford, director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art, takes us on a journey through West Africa to learn how gold was the foundation for massive empires—and his own family—and how it continues shining brightly in West African culture today. 2019-04-1021 min
The ForumThe tales of TimbuktuThe fabled city of Timbuktu is a curiosity. To 16th century Muslim scholars, it was the cosmopolitan hub of Islamic learning in West Africa; to European explorers 300 years later, it was a place of mystery, whose name remains synonymous with being at the end of the Earth. Most recently, in 2013, Timbuktu was at the centre of the world's attention again, after Islamist militants threatened thousands of valuable historic manuscripts stored in the city's famous libraries. Believed to be the richest person in history, it was Mansa Musa - the emperor of the vast Mali Empire - who first developed...2018-06-0938 min
TED Talks Society and CultureThe powerful stories that shaped Africa | Gus Casely-HayfordIn the vast sweep of history, even an empire can be forgotten. In this wide-ranging talk, Gus Casely-Hayford shares origin stories of Africa that are too often unwritten, lost, unshared. Travel to Great Zimbabwe, the ancient city whose mysterious origins and advanced architecture continue to confound archeologists. Or to the age of Mansa Musa, the ruler of the Mali Empire whose vast wealth built the legendary libraries of Timbuktu. And consider which other history lessons we might unwittingly overlook.2017-10-2019 minTED Podcast | Society and Culture아프리카를 이뤄낸 강렬한 이야기들 | 거스 케이즐리 헤이포드 (Gus Casely-Hayford)거대한 역사의 소용돌이 속에서는 어쩌면 하나의 왕국도 잊어질 수 있습니다. 폭넓은 소재를 다루는 이 강연에서 거스 케이즐리 헤이포드는 여지껏 기록으로 남겨지지 못한, 잃어버린, 또는 공유되지 못한 아프리카의 기원 이야기들을 우리와 나눕니다. 지금까지도 고고학자들을 놀라게 하는 위대한 짐바브웨의 신비한 유래와 고도의 건축 양식부터, 팀북투의 전설적인 도서관을 있게 한 엄청난 부의 말리 황제, 만사 무사까지. 이 강연을 듣고 난 뒤, 우리가 무심코 지나칠 수 있는 역사 수업에는 또 무엇이 있을지 고민해보시기 바랍니다.2017-10-2019 minTEDTalks 社会与文化塑造非洲的震撼历史 | 古思·卡斯利-哈尔福德在历史的辽阔中，连一个帝国也能被遗忘。在这个跨越历史长河的讲话中，古思·卡斯利-哈尔福德（Gus Casely-Hayford）分享了关于未被记录的，遗失了的，以及被封存的非洲起源故事。跟他来到大津巴布韦古城，近距离接触因神秘的由来以及高级的建筑依旧使考古学家目不暇接的古城；或者穿越到曼萨·穆萨的年代，了解这位马里帝国的一代君主是如何将大量的财富用于建设传说的廷巴克图图书馆；并且思索其它我们无意间忽视的历史。2017-10-2019 minTEDTalks 사회와 문화아프리카를 이뤄낸 강렬한 이야기들 | 거스 케이즐리 헤이포드 (Gus Casely-Hayford)거대한 역사의 소용돌이 속에서는 어쩌면 하나의 왕국도 잊어질 수 있습니다. 폭넓은 소재를 다루는 이 강연에서 거스 케이즐리 헤이포드는 여지껏 기록으로 남겨지지 못한, 잃어버린, 또는 공유되지 못한 아프리카의 기원 이야기들을 우리와 나눕니다. 지금까지도 고고학자들을 놀라게 하는 위대한 짐바브웨의 신비한 유래와 고도의 건축 양식부터, 팀북투의 전설적인 도서관을 있게 한 엄청난 부의 말리 황제, 만사 무사까지. 이 강연을 듣고 난 뒤, 우리가 무심코 지나칠 수 있는 역사 수업에는 또 무엇이 있을지 고민해보시기 바랍니다.2017-10-2019 minTEDTalks Sociedad y CulturaLas poderosas historias que han conformado África | Gus Casely-HayfordEn la gran vastedad de la historia hasta un imperio puede ser olvidado. En esta charla transcendental, Gus Casely-Hayford comparte historias sobre el origen de África que quedan con demasiada frecuencia sin documentar, se pierden o se dejan de compartir. Viaja a Gran Zimbabue, la antigua ciudad cuyo origen misterioso y avanzada arquitectura siguen desconcertando a los arqueólogos. O a la época de Mansa Musa, gobernante del Imperio Malí, gracias a cuya enorme riqueza se construyeron las legendarias bibliotecas de Tombuctú. Y piensa qué otras lecciones de historia podríamos estar pasando por alto sin darnos cuenta.2017-10-2019 minTEDTalks Sociedade e CulturaAs histórias poderosas que formaram a África | Gus Casely-HayfordNa vasta e ampla história, até um império pode ser esquecido. Nesta extensa palestra, Gus Casely-Hayford conta histórias da origem da África que, demasiadas vezes, são perdidas, não contadas e não escritas. Viaje à Grande Zimbábue, a antiga cidade cujas origens misteriosas e arquitetura avançada continuam a confundir arqueólogos. Ou vá à era de Mansa Musa, o soberano do Império de Mali, cuja vasta riqueza construiu as bibliotecas lendárias de Tombuctu. E pense quais outras lições de histórias nós, provavelmente, ignoramos inconscientemente.2017-10-2019 minTEDTalks Culture et sociétéLes puissantes histoires qui ont façonné l'Afrique | Gus Casely-HayfordDans le vaste cours de l'histoire, même un empire peut être oublié. Dans cette présentation qui traverse les âges et les civilisations, Gus Casely-Hayford partage des histoires originales de l'Afrique trop souvent non-écrites, perdues et non-partagées. Voyagez au Grand Zimbabwe, la vieille ville dont les origines mystérieuses et l'architecture avancée continuent de déconcerter les archéologues. Ou à l'époque de Mansa Musa, le chef de l'Empire du Mali dont la grande richesse lui permit de construire les célèbres bibliothèques de Tambouctou. Et imaginez le nombre de leçons de l'histoire que nous négligeo...2017-10-2019 min
Art Gallery of OntarioDr.Gus Casely-Hayford – The Silent Muse: The Influence of African Art on Picasso’s Early WorkCurator and Historian Dr. Gus Casely-Hayford discusses the shift in the art world led by Pablo Picasso and his work inspired by the art of Africa.2016-08-101h 34
A Good ReadMartin Stephen and Augustus Casely-HayfordHarriett Gilbert and her guests, historian, Gus Casely-Hayford and educationalist Martin Stephen discuss books by Aminatta Forna, Dan Vyleta and Thomas Hardy.Gus chooses a fictional account of the fall-out from the conflict in Sierra Leone, Aminatta Forna's "The Memory of Love", which has a natural resonance with Harriett's own choice, "Pavel and I". This is a first novel from Dan Vyleta, set in post-war Berlin.Martin Stephen brings with him “Poems of Thomas Hardy” selected by Claire Tomalin.First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2012.2012-02-2127 min
Art Gallery of OntarioRivington Place: building a new space for new ideasDr. Augustus (Gus) Casely-Hayford will discuss some of the issues connected to delivering culturally diverse art in 21st-century London.2007-05-171h 04