Episode 13: Hypnotized, Mesmerized by What Our Eyes Have Found

About this episode

This episode explores early 20th-century art movements and their role in challenging cultural narratives.

The latest episode of The Persistence opens with a very relatable childhood crisis: that first moment when a story you believed your whole life suddenly unravels. Host Angélica Cordero uses this myth-busting moment as a bridge into a larger cultural awakening, tracing how early 20th-century art movements like Dada, Neo-Dada, Judson Dance Theater, and Fluxus began shredding America’s shiny narratives long before the 1960s demanded it. Along the way, she spotlights boundary-pushers such as Marcel Duchamp, John Cage, and Yoko Ono, revealing how their weird, radical, rule-breaking work was not just art but prophecy. These creators exposed cracks in the culture decades before the mainstream could admit the foundations were shifting. This episode invites listeners to rethink the stories they were raised on, reflect on their own moments of disillusionment, and recognize why challenging the status quo has always been a necessary act of resistance. This episode was written by and produced by Angélica Cordero, with a little help from ChatGPT. Our theme song is Don’t Kid Yourself Baby by Fold , used with their blessings. Podcast artwork for The Persistence features Mexican-American activist…

People in this episode

Host: Angélica Cordero

Topics covered

• art movements
• cultural awakening
• myth-busting
• disillusionment
• status quo
• resistance

Keywords

• Dada
• Neo-Dada
• Fluxus
• cultural resistance
• art prophecy
• disillusionment
• Marcel Duchamp
• John Cage
• Yoko Ono

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: ChatGPT, Fold, Sunroot Studio

Books & works: Don’t Kid Yourself Baby, An Audience of Artists: Dada, Neo-Dada, and the Emergence of Abstract Expressionism

More episodes of The Persistence

• Episode 18: Left in the cold, Kept in the Dark · May 29, 2026 · 59 min
• Episode 17: Now They Do What They Told Ya · May 9, 2026 · 52 min
• Episode 16: I See No Changes · April 24, 2026 · 48 min
• Episode 15: Strange You Never Knew · March 27, 2026 · 40 min
• Am I invisible 'cause you ignore me? · February 6, 2026 · 22 min
• Episode 14: The World Keeps Turning · January 10, 2026 · 38 min