AJ Four Ways: Text Only (by date) | headlines only
DANCE
IDEAS
- Happy Hundredth Birthday to Gunther Schuller (1925-2015)
- Good Morning.
Today’s highlights: Institutional stewardship is under fire this morning. The Phillips Collection is facing backlash from its own board and the founder’s family for selling off “the family silver” to fund operations (The New York Times), while the Metropolitan Opera admitted a significant security lapse allowed protestors to breach the orchestra pit during Carmen (The New York Times).
In Italy, a rare fatal accident occurred inside a circus “Globe of Death” (The New York Times), and Portland’s city government moves to retake control of its downtown performance venues (Oregon ArtsWatch). Plus: The bleak reality of Ed Sheeran’s fame (Slate) and a Scottish folk pioneer’s fight to reclaim his music (The Guardian). And here’s a way of thinking about AI and creativity as structural/systemic challenge rather than a new toolset. (Doug McLennan/Diacritical)
All of today’s stories below:
- Improv In Real Life Podcast
This bi-weekly podcast hosted by creative arts therapist, improviser and storyteller Jude Treder-Wolff (www.lifestage.me/trainer) features guests with knowledge and expertise about applications of creativity to daily life at home, at work, and in the community. With a focus on improvisation skills, practice and philosophy for facing and navigating the stresses of today’s world, it is entertaining and richly informative.
- The City Of Portland Takes (Back) Its Performing Arts Venues
“The three downtown buildings with five theaters are owned by the city but have been managed by the elected regional government for more than three decades.” – Oregon ArtsWatch
- One Performer Killed, Another Gravely Injured At Live Circus Stunt In Italy
“Fatal accidents inside the Globe of Death — a popular circus stunt in which multiple motorcyclists ride around inside a globe-shaped metal cage in tight formations — are rare, despite the stunt’s death-defying appearance.” – The New York Times
ISSUES
- The Phillips Collection Sells Off Art, Riles Its Board, And Angers The Family
Robert Storr, former dean at the Yale School of Art and advisory board member: “‘Selling off the family silver is not a strategy for prolonging and increasing its fortunes,’ Storr wrote, urging that the Phillips ‘consider rescinding this absurd gambit.’” – The New York Times
- What Happened To Al Rockoff’s Historic Photos Of Cambodia Is A Cautionary Tale Of Fame And Poverty
A man who said he would help Rockoff – one of the last photographers in Phnom Penh as the Khmer Rouge marched in – has all of the negatives, but what is he planning to do with them? And where will any money go? – The New York Times
- Louvre President, Under Fire, Defends The Museum
Some, including a prominent art critic, have said she should lose her job, and she has been called to testify twice before Parliament. The criticism is particularly charged given the tumultuous state of French politics. – The New York Times
- Frida Kahlo Painting Sells for $54.7 — Most Ever For A Woman Artist
The 1940 canvas, “The Dream (The Bed),” topped the previous record held by a $44.4 million Georgia O’Keeffe, “Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1” that sold to Walmart billionaire Alice Walton 11 years earlier. – The Wall Street Journal
- Secret To Code Of “Kryptos” Sculpture Sells For Almost $1 Million
“The long sought-after solution to the fourth passage of Kryptos, artist Jim Sanborn’s secret-code-bearing sculpture at CIA headquarters, sold at auction Thursday night for a final price of $962,500, blowing past its $300,000 to $500,0000 estimate and placing the 35-year-old enigma in new hands.” – The Washington Post (MSN)
MEDIA
- Dear Everyone Who Completely Ruined Their Gmail Thanks To Viral Posts And Articles
Google says that no, they’re actually not training their AI on your email. (And if they were, would opting out of “smart features” actually stop the company? Hm.) – The Verge
- Gamers Are Running Scenarios In Fortnite To Prepare For ICE Raids
One of the organizers: “It’s a way to get folks to know or get used to what [ICE raids] might look like. … What their rights are as bystanders, as citizens, as noncitizens, as folks who are documented, undocumented.” – Wired
- Who Is AI Nostalgia Slop Even For?
“It’s hard not to see the platform as a place where users are encouraged to double down on familiar archetypes instead of making something truly original, or even remotely interesting. … So where is the good stuff?” – The Verge (Archive Today)
- Kennedy Center Boss Pushes Back Against NYT Story Of Gross Mismanagement
The NYT and the Senator’s letter writer are going to be embarrassed. We have a balanced budget, we’ve raised a whopping $117 MILLION under @realDonaldTrump – and FIFA has paid millions plus covered all expenses (the NYT made a gigantic mistake by assuming FIFA was a rental not a major Sponsor).” – The Daily Beast
- Data Backs Up The Stereotype: Visual And Performing Artists’ Lives In The US Are Very Precarious
“We all know the trope of the starving artist,” said researcher Gwendolyn Rugg, “But there’s actually surprisingly little reliable data out there to back this up.” Rugg helped gather and analyze the data from a new survey by the University of Chicago’s NORC and the Mellon Foundation. – NPR
MUSIC
- The Words English Speakers Use Only In Highly Specific Circumstances
Diametrically together? Bode excellently? – Mental Floss
- More Than Half Of The Novelists In Britain Think That Software, AKA AI, Will Replace Them
“Many participants reported that their work had already been used without their permission to train large language models, and more than a third (39%) said their income had fallen as a result of generative AI. A large majority also expected their earnings to decline further.” – The Guardian (UK)
- When Oprah Picks An Argument With You Even As She Picks Your Book
Novelist Ann Packer is OK with that. “As any veteran author knows, books that get people talking have a better chance of bubbling up on the best-seller list, even without celebrity endorsement.” – The New York Times
- Superman Comic No.1 Sells For Record Price
A copy of Superman No 1 that was discovered in an attic in California last year has become the world’s most expensive comic book after selling for US$9.12m (£6.96m, A$14.14m). – The Guardian
- How The New York Times Crossword Became Political
In an excerpt from his book Across the Universe: The Past, Present, and Future of the Crossword Puzzle, crossword constructor and former Will Shortz assistant Natan Last describes not only how it happened, but why it was probably unavoidable. – The Nation
PEOPLE
- Happy Hundredth Birthday to Gunther Schuller (1925-2015)
- Good Morning.
Today’s highlights: Institutional stewardship is under fire this morning. The Phillips Collection is facing backlash from its own board and the founder’s family for selling off “the family silver” to fund operations (The New York Times), while the Metropolitan Opera admitted a significant security lapse allowed protestors to breach the orchestra pit during Carmen (The New York Times).
In Italy, a rare fatal accident occurred inside a circus “Globe of Death” (The New York Times), and Portland’s city government moves to retake control of its downtown performance venues (Oregon ArtsWatch). Plus: The bleak reality of Ed Sheeran’s fame (Slate) and a Scottish folk pioneer’s fight to reclaim his music (The Guardian). And here’s a way of thinking about AI and creativity as structural/systemic challenge rather than a new toolset. (Doug McLennan/Diacritical)
All of today’s stories below:
- Improv In Real Life Podcast
This bi-weekly podcast hosted by creative arts therapist, improviser and storyteller Jude Treder-Wolff (www.lifestage.me/trainer) features guests with knowledge and expertise about applications of creativity to daily life at home, at work, and in the community. With a focus on improvisation skills, practice and philosophy for facing and navigating the stresses of today’s world, it is entertaining and richly informative.
- The City Of Portland Takes (Back) Its Performing Arts Venues
“The three downtown buildings with five theaters are owned by the city but have been managed by the elected regional government for more than three decades.” – Oregon ArtsWatch
- One Performer Killed, Another Gravely Injured At Live Circus Stunt In Italy
“Fatal accidents inside the Globe of Death — a popular circus stunt in which multiple motorcyclists ride around inside a globe-shaped metal cage in tight formations — are rare, despite the stunt’s death-defying appearance.” – The New York Times
PEOPLE
- Happy Hundredth Birthday to Gunther Schuller (1925-2015)
- Good Morning.
Today’s highlights: Institutional stewardship is under fire this morning. The Phillips Collection is facing backlash from its own board and the founder’s family for selling off “the family silver” to fund operations (The New York Times), while the Metropolitan Opera admitted a significant security lapse allowed protestors to breach the orchestra pit during Carmen (The New York Times).
In Italy, a rare fatal accident occurred inside a circus “Globe of Death” (The New York Times), and Portland’s city government moves to retake control of its downtown performance venues (Oregon ArtsWatch). Plus: The bleak reality of Ed Sheeran’s fame (Slate) and a Scottish folk pioneer’s fight to reclaim his music (The Guardian). And here’s a way of thinking about AI and creativity as structural/systemic challenge rather than a new toolset. (Doug McLennan/Diacritical)
All of today’s stories below:
- Improv In Real Life Podcast
This bi-weekly podcast hosted by creative arts therapist, improviser and storyteller Jude Treder-Wolff (www.lifestage.me/trainer) features guests with knowledge and expertise about applications of creativity to daily life at home, at work, and in the community. With a focus on improvisation skills, practice and philosophy for facing and navigating the stresses of today’s world, it is entertaining and richly informative.
- The City Of Portland Takes (Back) Its Performing Arts Venues
“The three downtown buildings with five theaters are owned by the city but have been managed by the elected regional government for more than three decades.” – Oregon ArtsWatch
- One Performer Killed, Another Gravely Injured At Live Circus Stunt In Italy
“Fatal accidents inside the Globe of Death — a popular circus stunt in which multiple motorcyclists ride around inside a globe-shaped metal cage in tight formations — are rare, despite the stunt’s death-defying appearance.” – The New York Times
THEATRE
VISUAL
- What The Ed Sheeran Documentary Shows About Culture Is, Honestly, A Little Depressing
Not because of the skill of the one-take camera crew. “We know, of course, that being a very famous person these days involves having phones shoved in your face. But to see it like this, minute by minute, is bleak viewing, no matter how catchy the tunes are.” – Slate
- Research: Students Learning With AI Say They Learn Less
The data revealed a consistent pattern: People who learned about a topic through an LLM versus web search felt that they learned less, invested less effort in subsequently writing their advice, and ultimately wrote advice that was shorter, less factual and more generic. – The Conversation
- The Surveillance Workplace Is Coming For Us
For many workers, both remote and in person, the workplace has quietly shifted into a site of constant measurement—where every pause can trigger scrutiny and where productivity is no longer just about results but continuous presence. – The Walrus
- So What Is Progress, Really? Some Limits Are Good
“Modernity is a machine for destroying limits.” This attack on limits is legible in a host of current phenomena, including mass immigration, free-market orthodoxy, the rise of AI, overseas labor exploitation, the clear-cutting of rainforests, and new ideas about gender. – The Atlantic
- For A Long Time Artists Have Been On The Leading Edge Of Culture. Maybe Its Time To Give Up That Role?
What about all the painting, sculpture, photography, video, and performance that people still love to make and see? They’re not going away, but it’s become harder to create fine art in those media while remaining on cultural discourse’s cutting edge. – Art in America
