Why people stared at a blank wall

Brady Haran, Mary Spender and Eric Johnson discuss a question about a famous blank wall.
LATERAL is a weekly podcast about interesting questions and even more interesting answers, hosted by Tom Scott. For business enquiries, contestant appearances or question submissions, visit www.lateralcas...
GUESTS:
Mary Spender: ‪@MarySpender‬, / maryspender
Brady Haran: ‪@ObjectivityVideos‬, / bradyharan
Eric Johnson: www.followfrid..., / heyheyesj
HOST: Tom Scott.
QUESTION PRODUCER: David Bodycombe.
RECORDED AT & EDITED BY: The Podcast Studios, Dublin.
EDITOR: Julie Hassett.
GRAPHICS SYSTEM & DESIGN: Chris Hanel at Support Class.
GRAPHICS ASSISTANCE: Dillon Pentz.
MUSIC: Karl-Ola Kjellholm ('Private Detective'/'Agrumes', courtesy of epidemicsound.com).
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS: Josh Halbur, Ben Justice, Lewis Tough, Arun Uttamchandani, Eglė Vaškevičiūtė.
FORMAT: Pad 26 Limited/Labyrinth Games Ltd.
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: David Bodycombe and Tom Scott.
© Pad 26 Limited (www.pad26.com) / Labyrinth Games Ltd. 2022.

[@sorrynotsorry8224]

My immediate thought was "Polar bear in a snowstorm", but Tom clarified by saying it was literally a blank wall.

[@sleepib]

My thought was a blank white wall that a motion picture would have been projected onto.

[@zachaboss]

I love watching these clips, especially with the subtitles (I just like having them on a video in case I mishear something). Still hoping the full episodes will get released on here one day...

[@willisverynice]

His explanation that the Mona Lisa was amongst other paintings actually defends him not getting the answer, because the wall wasn’t blank, only a specific portion of it was.

[@charlesenfield2192]

I got the art museum part right away, but not the specifics. I was at the Museum of Modern Art in New York last year, and there was spot on the wall with a title plate but no painting. I studied it for 10-15 seconds trying to decipher whether the artwork was some subtle treatment of the wall, the notion of putting a title plate on a blank wall, or if the work was missing, before concluding from the title and artist that it was almost certainly missing. Note to curators looking to save a few bucks - After chuckling at myself, I noticed that many patrons were spending a significant time examining this "exhibit."

[@claymiller9707]

Were you sure that it wasn’t meant to refer to a sculpture in the middle of the room? I often get confused by those.

[@dcarillion]

Do you remember which painting it was or which section it was in?

[@shaunhouse8469]

As a Doctor Who fan I actually know what's on the back of the Mona Lisa it's "This is a fake" in sharpie written in Tom Baker's handwriting.

[@imstupid880]

Honestly, it'd be weirder if Kafka *didn't* show up to stare at a blank wall.

[@gdp3rd]

The first time I was in Paris, in 1963, the Mona Lisa was on display at the Metropolitan Museum of New York. Then when we went to Vatican City in 1964, Michelangelo's Pietà was in New York. Then, many years later when I was in Dublin, an exhibit of a Viking hoard was temporarily in the United States.

[@qwertyTRiG]

You seem very unlucky in your art appreciation.

[@GusNewman-e7g]

Whenever I visited a modern art exhibition, I would spend some time perusing a litter bin to see if anybody else would do the same, usually with limited success. One year I was doing this at the Royal Academy summer exhibition when I noticed it had a catalogue number.

[@ThatCake]

I would quite like the full episodes, please and thank you

[@luisfranco8424]

1998 the first time i saw La Mona she was on a wall with a dozen other paintings. The only thing between me and her was a three pole velvet rope. That was before the da Vinci Code, the last time i went to see her there were about 300 people between us jammed into a room were she was on a wall by herself

[@felipeitoanuatti]

Brady from Numberphile and Mary Spender in a Tom Scott video?! Cool

[@literallyjustgrass]

Ok i haven't gotten to the answer yet, but an art piece that's just a blank wall called "think about what you've done" is actually amazing

[@richardl6751]

Or "This is not what you think".

[@kjth2003]

"Why people started at a blank wall?" Because they were still waiting for full episodes to be released on KZbin...

[@Kummahndough]

Tom has a statement as to why he doesn't have full episodes on KZbin. The TL;DR is that there's no audience retention when episodes are posted on KZbin.

[@americanadianguy]

@@Kummahndough No audience retention?? Tom Scott has never failed to retain me as a viewer of his shows!

[@Kummahndough]

@@americanadianguy I'm very much the same, but unfortunately we're not the majority, it seems.

[@fltfathin]

@@americanadianguy think again, the post is timely every week but did you get all the notif and recommendation?

[@TheAbyssalStorm]

@@Kummahndough There is also the analytics, if the longer videos aren’t that viewed, the shorter clips won’t be recommended as often.

[@flutechannel]

Mary is so awesome and so is the crew. All of you are so natural and entertaining thanks so much for making my day and cant wait to binge during the holidays!

[@GnrMilligan]

Wow, Mary Spender! A huge talent! A crossover video I could never have predicted. Not suggesting a huge talent wouldn't want to work with Tom, I'm a subscriber after all. It's just the mix genres kinda threw me! A like and a sub. Look forward to seeing what else this channel offers.

[@darvindo18]

I could see Tom reaching for the Mystery Biscuits so many times in this video. Bring back Mystery biscuits!!

[@therealEmpyre]

If they X-Ray the Mona Lisa, they will find "This is a fake" written in ball point pen, in the 4th Doctor's handwriting.

[@richmanricho]

Thanks Brady .. now im looking at the x-rays and backside images of Mona.. There goes my morning!

[@p1rkarlsson]

Well what can i say, sir Richard Rollington got me again. The "Mona Lisa's back" google went a whole other direction.

[@henrikericsson]

I’m still curious about Mary’s sinister guess

[@smearfo5612]

Firing line.

[@richmanricho]

"Mona, Dear, Pull a funny face, it will send people crazy for hundreds of years" or "Leo, Hurry the hell up! My butt has gone numb"

[@elainebelzDetroit]

I worked at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco at the time a couple of original icons (by Robert Lenz) were smashed up by a "disturbed individual." One was a semi-famous icon of Mary Magdalene, and the other was of John Donne. While we were waiting for Lenz' studio to send reproductions, those spaces were blank, but the holders for votive candles were embedded into the walls, so still there. People came looking for Mary Magdalene (almost no one remembered John Donne had also been there), and they lit the candles to the blank walls. It was so fascinating.

[@fromdarknesscomeslight6894]

6:04 For anyone wondering what's on the back of the Mona Lisa, it's the letter H and the number 29. ........ Huh.

[@kimnylandmathisen]

Still waiting for full episodes. Kinda miss the visual when I try the podcast form.

[@jkkmane]

The colored subtitles are so cool.

[@walker1054]

This question would work well with that video Tom done seemingly years ago where theres a metal structure that had some sort of explosion(forgot how) at random veryyy irregular times, like a month apart even, so when passing it people would stop for a bit hoping that they'd get to witness it. So "Why do people stop at look at this metal inanimate structure?"

[@LincolnChamberlin]

Please do the full episodes

[@elliottmcollins]

Once again, if they just keep talking, eventually Tom can't help but just give them hints and eventually tell them.

[@lundylow]

6:04 Kinda wish he gave more context. I just find "wooden back of a painting"

[@joelhageman1903]

Ok, officially WTF. Subscribed now... to this one too. I saw the 'I'm taking a break' video. I forget how many channels there are now.

[@cankoklu]

I thought this was going to be about the time someone made an 18hr movie to spite the censorship organization.

[@lachlan1980]

Some say the Mona Lisa is so popular today because of the theft, combined with something called the mere-exposure effect. Some people also say that the mere-exposure effect is also to blame for the kardashian's "popularity."

[@Poldovico]

0:35 were they forced to by paradoxical societal expectations?

[@panda4247]

Offtopic, but: Brady looks a bit like Ricky Gervais (bar the hair colour) Eric johnson is not the guitarist I know; who is he? What did Mary mean at 2:03?

[@charliegnu]

If you want another wall people go to look at, search for the 12 angle stone in Cuzco, Peru.

[@dryued6874]

I googled the back of Mona Lisa, and it's a lot more unremarkable than I expected. Honestly, I'm not sure I understand what the deal with it is.

[@joecornfield6329]

I found a picture of the back of the mona lisa. It was underwhelming.

[@overduminc]

Curious of what sinister thought Mary was thinking at 1:55

[@AlexisCheynas]

My mind went to standing in line, facing a wall, with the smell of gunpowder in the air... a bit of pain and then nothing...

[@Carbon2861996]

Not knowing the timespan Kafka was alive my mind went straight to Auschwitz

[@rasmis]

@@AlexisCheynas I thought of them being spectators at an execution.That used to be quite an attraction.

[@ungratefulmango]

@@rasmis They wouldn't exactly have been staring at the wall. They'd have queued to see the execution.

[@WayneKitching]

In the words of Frog Leap Studio: Mary, Spender.l, Mary Spender, Mary Spender!

[@StewChicken42]

_Interpol has entered the chat._

[@MrMartinSchou]

I thought it was the wall just above Duchamp's "Fountain".

[@b3z3jm3nny]

Which episode was this from?? Feel it should be standard to say which episode each highlight is from.

[@lateralcast]

It's from show 8. We'll give your suggestion some thought.

[@b3z3jm3nny]

@@lateralcastthanks!

[@LilOak]

Is the full podcast not on youtube??

[@ac.creations]

If someone prepped a perfectly smooth wall with vantablack I'd look at it.

[@daerdevvyl4314]

I thought it was the Western Wall of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.

[@TheRubySpider]

If make enough jokes about forming a heist team, then they can actually carry out one of their heists, and no one will suspect them. It’s all part of the plan 😎

[@tekvax01]

Brady! irradiating something [with x-rays] does not make it Radioactive..........................................

[@cannot-handle-handles]

Came here to say this.

[@olivier2553]

I think that the frame was still there, so it would not actually be a blank wall.

[@afivey]

You might be confusing what happened with how any number of directors of any number of heist and crime films chose to depict the scene where authorities realises a painting was stolen. That'd maybe make for good cinematography and storytelling but considering fingerprints had already been used in a criminal investigation and prosecution since 1892, and how it's not mentioned the frame was left behind I'm not convinced. Criminals are generally practical and not generally theatrical. Even the ones that commit a crime "to send a message" don't want to get caught so quickly the message that message risks being buried by a story of how quickly police captured them.

[@shadowsanddust2]

Dang.. I must love mary.. I have seen her once. But instantly recognized her.. and Mary doesn't mind.. if she doesn't make the scene

[@DavidCowie2022]

She's got a daytime job, she's doing alright.

[@kenmahoney5255]

Hell yes, I got it before she did😂😅

[@FilthyandFree]

CHARL!

[@MLeoDaalder]

The title reminds me of an art piece (well 3 pieces side by side) in the Van Abbe museum in Eindhoven, maybe 18 years ago. 3 primer-grey canvases, named "unknown title", by "unknown artist". I'm definitely not one of the arts, but I couldn't see anything other than someone prepared 3 canvasses and didn't bother painting anything...

[@TheDarrellimpey]

Every Doctor Who fan knows what's on the back of the Mona Lisa.

[@ericpeterson6520]

Didn't know that people were so eager to see a wall that doesn't have the Mona Lisa on it. All of the walls in my house don't have the Mona Lisa on them, maybe I should start charging admission to see them

[@daveallen63]

Here's a question, is there such a thing as a literal "blank wall"?

[@jendorei]

a solid color wall, preferably white, with nothing on it

[@daveallen63]

@@jendorei but it still has color, and it's on it. I know what the phrase means, but it does still leave the definition of blank open to the observer.

[@chi643]

@@daveallen63 blank just means it doesnt have any decoration on it

[@TheGreatSteve]

Brandy Haran, Tom Scotch, Bloody Mary Spender and Eric Johnson?

[@annaczgli2983]

Agree completely - The Mona Lisa is overrated!

[@notthere83]

This seems like bad question writing. Because it sounds like they didn't queue up FOR staring at the wall. But they queued up for the museum and briefly looked at the empty space in passing.

[@lateralcast]

"For the first time there were queues outside the Louvre, just to see the empty space where the painting had hung." edition.cnn.com/2013/11/18/world/europe/mona-lisa-the-theft/index.html

[@notthere83]

@@lateralcast Huh. Thanks for clearing that up! So strange...

[@cyclingsalmon]

If you think about it, you stare at a blank wall every time you go to a cinema. There's physically nothing on the wall, it only reflects the light.

[@korganrocks3995]

I can think of a few movies that were more boring than staring at a blank wall...

[@cyclingsalmon]

@@korganrocks3995 and more predictable ones as well

[@Ck87JF]

During this video, one of them asked if there was something "screened" on the wall - I think they were intending to ask if anything was projected, but the answer was no. Still, if you were to come up with a trivia question about people staring at a blank wall, the answer could be a movie/projector screen and it would be a good question.

[@DekonR]

The all murdered their abusive fathers with a hammer when they were 12 years old?

[@erictaylor5462]

Were they all guys? Maybe they were using the bathroom. Was it the pee que?

[@dcltdw]

Ahhhh, two of my favorite YTers (Tom Scott and Mary Spender)!!! I love seeing these collabs!

[@anonnymowse]

Very disappointing to see it in person. It is not worth the hype.

[@qwertyTRiG]

I learned that the Mona Lisa was painted on wood from the original Lateral quiz show.

[@stephaniewachter1048]

Picasso was accused of stealing the painting

[@deepthought9267]

These are way too easy

[@Adipose69]

OCEANS TOM, when!? Heist all the things!

[@VibhutiSakhardande]

BERLINVWAL; I JUST PRESSED &I NOWWCX ITHGA