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- The Ninety Nobody Wants From ChatGPT
Good Morning,
Students, it turns out, are tired of AI — not on principle, but because a ninety from ChatGPT doesn’t feel like anything, while a ninety earned over six hours in a basement does (The Walrus). Most people want to earn their accomplishments. That’s the argument culture often fails to win when it’s asked to justify itself in somebody else’s currency.
Today’s institutional news is that failure in four lenses. London’s Gate Theatre closes after 47 years, four years after Arts Council England zeroed it out (The Guardian). Hungary’s new government scrapped the National Gallery its predecessor planned as a monument to itself (The Art Newspaper). The Lucas Museum opens billing its collection as “the people’s art” (Los Angeles Times) while four contractors allege it called itself private to skip the rules that govern public building (Los Angeles Times). And Lonnie Bunch’s exit from the Smithsonian gets two perspectives: a legacy of keeping the place on mission (The Atlantic), and a warning that what can’t be captured gets destroyed by chaos (Washington Post).
Meanwhile, following the administration’s example, South Park has renamed itself South America, with thanks to “Paramount — a Skydance Capitulation” (The Guardian).
All of our stories below.
- Europe’s Largest Center For Dance Is Now Under Construction In The Netherlands
“Located on a prominent site in Rotterdam’s historic docklands, … Danshuis will be the largest centre in Europe dedicated to the production and development of dance under one roof. Open to all ages and levels of experience, it will provide facilities for both professional and amateur dance-making.” – Gramilano
- Many Students Are Sick Of AI
“Obviously, failing and struggling is not fun, but the sense of pride and succeeding afterwards is very, very motivating for me. And I don’t think you’d get that same kick or that same hit from getting a ninety from ChatGPT versus getting a ninety over an essay where you spent six hours in a basement.” – The Walrus
- Scott Rudin Is Back On Broadway Again — And These Next Projects Are Pretty Brave
The first, starting previews next month, is Bruce Norris’s Downstate, about four convicted sex offenders, one of whom is confronted by a now-adult victim. The second has less fraught subject matter; in fact, it has almost no words at all. Bess Wohl’s Small Mouth Sounds stars Julia Roberts and Paul Rudd. – The Hollywood Reporter
- Lonnie Bunch’s Smithsonian Legacy
Through a combination of principled stances and deft political skills, he has kept the sprawling institution on mission and aligned with its public. – The Atlantic
- Will The Lucas Museum Disrupt Museums?
The museum calls it “narrative art,” defined as art “created to tell stories through images.” George Lucas and his wife, Mellody Hobson, have also described their collection as “the people’s art.” – Los Angeles Times
- London Loses Another Theatre Company As The Gate Shuts Down
“The Gate Theatre, which has punched above its weight ever since it was founded above a Notting Hill pub in 1979, is to close permanently next month. The announcement comes four years after the theatre had what it described as a ‘devastating’ 100% cut to its Arts Council England funding.” – The Guardian
- The Making Of American Sophistication
Sophistication, one begins to think, is a thing won against the grain of privilege—a substitute for it, a social sleight of hand. A “classy” entertainer is almost never someone from the upper classes; sophisticated people are mostly smart people passing as rich people. – The New Yorker
- Jerome Foundation works to close the Hope GapJerome Foundation announces an unprecedented increase in grantmaking this year, helping their grantees persevere and innovate in challenging times.
- Hungary’s New Government Cancels New Museum
Hungary’s new government has scrapped plans for a New National Gallery that was to form part of a development in Budapest’s City Park (Városliget) aimed at elevating the capital’s cultural standing. – The Art Newspaper
- Contractors Sue $1B Lucas Museum Over Unpaid Bills
The suit, one of four recently brought by contractors alleging nonpayment, claims the museum “actively promoted, contracted, and labeled the construction as a ‘private, non-profit development’ to bypass the rigorous administrative, registration, and bonding mandates of the California Public Contract Code, Civil Code, and Labor Code.” – Los Angeles Times (MSN)
- How Allen Ginsburg’s “Howl” Became A Free-Speech Landmark
In 1957, undercover police bought a copy of the poetry collection which featured “Howl” at City Lights bookstore in San Francisco — and proceeded to arrest owner Lawrence Ferlinghetti and manager Shig Murao for selling obscene material. Their trial set a major precedent in First Amendment case law. – BBC (MSN)
- We Need Word Detectives
We appreciate that each of us is a link in a millennia-long chain of language, connected to people over the centuries by the words they bequeathed us. Following where, and through whom, that chain has passed is the business of etymology. – Psyche
- The Meaning Of Lonnie Bunch Leaving The Smithsonian
What this administration cannot capture directly of the country’s culture, it destroys with chaos, making life intolerable for people who persevere in the audacious belief that things like “the increase and diffusion of knowledge” actually matter. – Washington Post (Yahoo)
- Trump Administration Strips Critical Language On Confederacy From Statue
That language has been removed from the website, and the marker in the cemetery has been replaced by a new sign that omits wording critical of slavery and the Confederacy. – Washington Post
- Choreographer Richard Alston, Pivotal Figure In British Contemporary Dance, Has Died At 77
“He played a leading role in developing the independent dance scene through the 1970s and early ‘80s, before going on to direct Ballet Rambert for six years from 1986, and then the Richard Alston Dance Company from 1994 to 2020.” – The Guardian
- Rome’s Largest Surviving Ancient Fresco/Mosaic Is Opening To Public, Three Decades After Its Discovery
“Mayor Roberto Gualtieri presented the recently restored ‘Painted City’ fresco and ‘Great Mosaic’ that were discovered in an underground gallery during excavations in the 1990s of the Baths of Trajan on the Oppio hill near the Colosseum.” The sites are opening on a trial basis, only on weekends, strictly for small groups. – AP
- We cannot quantify the richness of a nation’s literary life
In the English-speaking world, is there a decline in our literacy and in how people live with literature? For the past while there has been a debate on whether we are losing our literary culture – James Marriott thinks we are at the “dawn of the post-literate society” and has a forthcoming book that extends the argument. I’ll write up a review when I get my copy, but Henry Oliver has already obtained it, and gives some thoughtful pushback on Marriott’s analysis. Who’s right?
I’m not sure. My intuition leans towards Marriott, but it is not due to any of the statistical analysis he provides (nor am I comforted by the statistical analyses cited by people who think Marriott has it wrong). And this is because we are in the realm of the unquantifiable.
There is no data that will tell us whether people are reading, understanding, enjoying, discussing with their friends, good books. Because there is no such statistical category. I can look up that in 2025 there were over six hundred thousand books published through traditional means (rather than self-published) in the United States, which seems to me an astoundingly big number, but that doesn’t tell me anything about the number of new works of well-wrought fiction, or poetry, or non-fiction. I can tell you that as of the last survey on public “participation” in the arts, 46.6% of adults in Indiana read at least some novels, short stories, poetry or plays, but I can’t tell you how much of it was forgettable trash. Yes, it’s true that virtually everybody reads something, if only on their phones, but that’s not the same, is it? And even if I read good, thoughtful short pieces on the very platform where I first wrote this post, the Substackers worth reading are those who have a deep personal history, and continuing practice, of reading intelligent books.
We can’t quantify the state of film by looking at annual box office numbers, or counting the number of people who watched a movie last month, or looking at the number of films released. We can’t quantify the state of visual art by the number of new galleries, or auction prices at Christie’s, or what proportion of Michiganders went to a gallery last year. We can’t quantify the cultural life of a city (sorry, I mean “vibrancy”) by adding up how many people who call themselves artists live there, or how much money is spent on entertainment there.
Whether there is a decline in meaningful engagement with good books is subjective, and cannot be calculated. It doesn’t mean we cannot say anything – the function of criticism is to bring an experienced, closely observant, unbiased eye to new (and old) works of art and music and literature, even if that eye is necessarily subjective (I am Humean on this subject). And I think the important question to ask about the current state of literacy is whether there continues to be a wide enough selection of new books that are worthwhile (and I’ll confess I find the evidence from the New York Times Book Review rather depressing on that front), and whether there continues to be a healthy critical mass of people who read them. (We could do the same thing for any genre of art). Whether people are increasingly relying on audiobooks, whether new bookstores are opening, with entire shelves devoted to gay hockey player fiction, whether there’s been a recent uptick in sales of The Odyssey, are side issues.
I think the question is important – intelligent debate about things that matter (and I don’t just mean political issues) depends on a culture of books, even if not everyone takes part (and clearly not everyone does, or ever did). “Takes” that are found on blogs, or magazines, or op-ed pages of what’s left of newspapers, will only decline in quality as people start thinking they are a sufficient substitute for the depth that can only be found in books – all we will be left with is takes about takes (writes someone composing a take, yes I know!).
Cross-posted at https://michaelrushton.substack.com/
- The Half-Dozen DC-Area Venues Where The National Symphony Will Play This Season
“Many performances will be staged at multiple venues, bringing the NSO to new places and making the shows more accessible to the broader D.C. region than ever before. With so many venues to choose from, we put together a guide.” – The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
- Following Trump’s Example, The “South Park” Guys Rename Their Show “South America”
“Inspired by the bravery and patriotism of Apple and Google, we are changing the name of South Park to SOUTH AMERICA,” creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker said in a statement. “We especially want to thank our parent company Paramount – a Skydance Capitulation.” – The Guardian
- Appalled Eiffel Tower Staffers Strike After Their Female Colleagues Are Told To Make Themselves Scarce
“The Eiffel Tower closed Monday due to strikes over outrage that female workers were allegedly ordered to leave and stay out of sight to comply with a special request from a traditional Hindu delegation that visited the monument over the weekend.” – ARTnews
- Anna Netrebko’s Lawsuit Against Met Opera Thrown Out For Second Time
“In her decision, … Judge Annalisa Torres said that Netrebko and her team failed to prove that Peter Gelb ‘acted with actual malice when he made the allegedly defamatory statements.’ Additionally, the judge concluded that Netrebko’s team were unable to prove that ‘Gelb’s 2024 and 2025 remarks’ were made in retaliation for the lawsuit.” – OperaWire
- Cate Blanchett, Herbert Blomstedt, Jenny Holzer, Daniel Libeskind, Andy Goldsworthy Win 2026 Praemium Imperiale
This year’s laurates of the ¥15 million (approximately $95,000) prize, awarded by the Japan Art Association in the categories of painting, sculpture, architecture, theatre/film, and music, are visual artists Holzer and Goldsworthy, architect Libeskind, actress Blanchett, and 99-year-old conductor Herbert Blomstedt, who was still working until earlier this year. – Artforum
- The Dance-Pop Singer That Argentines Treat As A Saint, Complete With Prayers, Shrines And Miracles
Miriam Alejandra Bianchi, known by the stage name Gilda, died 30 years ago in a highway collision, and she’s since become one of Argentina’s many folk saints, not officially recognized by the Vatican but venerated by ordinary people nevertheless. Gilda’s wrecked tour bus has even become a pilgrimage site. – AP
- What Does A Healthy Arts Ecosystem Look Like?
A healthy cultural ecosystem needs not just the creation and presentation of art. It needs education, access, discovery, interpretation and criticism, documentation, advocacy, funding, participation, connection, preservation and audience development. – Culture OC
- Fans Are Angry That This Season’s “Dancing With The Stars” Features Stars Who Can Already Dance
“Why do you keep adding professionally trained dancers to the cast?” tweeted one fan in response to the news that the next crop of celebrity competitors — Jenna Dewan, Julia Stiles, and Harry Shum Jr. — have all at some point danced for their livelihood. – The Independent (UK)
- Hollywood’s Record Summer Box Office Has Analysts Dreaming Of A $10B Year
The summer’s total was a nearly 30% improvement on the lackluster 2025 season. Notably, this summer’s tally was 9% higher than that of the same period in 2019 — before the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes upended the industry — though when accounting for inflation, this summer ends up ranking below. – Los Angeles Times
- Trump Attacks UK Plans To Boost BBC On YouTube
In a submission to Britain’s consultation on the proposals, the U.S. government said the plans would be state meddling in the algorithms of American companies that could amount to “extraterritorial censorship of protected speech by Americans online.” – Deadline
- How Knowledge Is Assembled
Just because something makes sense doesn’t mean that it’s true. Even valid reasoning cannot establish that its starting premises are correct. Even today, science continues to rely on experience, reasoning, and knowledge passed down by others. Much of the scientific process comes down to how we check our knowledge. – 3 Quarks Daily
- American Literary Culture Is Besotted With Reissues
“If the past few years of American literary publishing have had a zeitgeist, it has been more like a series of geists from zeits past.” – n+1
- The Making Of A de Kooning
Like Balanchine, de Kooning made images for the mind about the body as it was expressed in the streets of the city. Sometimes, when I watch Balanchine’s choreography, I can’t help imagining “Monumental Woman” and other drawings from the “Women” series flashing behind the dancers as they embody de Kooning’s symphony of flesh. – The New Yorker
- Smithsonian Chief Lonnie Bunch To Retire Amid Trump’s Culture-War Attacks
“Bunch’s resignation comes at one of the most politically fraught moments in the Smithsonian’s 180-year history. … Trump has sought to purge what he calls ‘improper ideology’ from its museums, while his administration has threatened the institution’s federal funding, tried to fire a museum director and challenged its authority over personnel and exhibitions.” – The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
- How Neoliberal Policies Corroded Democracy (And How To Fix It)
Promises of prosperity by Reagan, Thatcher and other advocates of neoliberalism were mistaken because it brought only fragility to previously prosperous democracies. – Aeon
- Barcelona: Hotbed Of Tap Dance
Guillem Alonso and his colleagues trained a new generation of tap dancers, and that generation, in turn, developed its own styles, pedagogies, and companies. They’re still developing them, as are their students. The result is a hotbed of creativity. – San Francisco Classical Voice
- South Carolina Arts Commission Requires Two LGBTQ Performing Groups To Prove Their Artistic Merit
In August, the Commission confirmed grants to all but two of the nearly 180 applicants its selection panel had approved. Those two are the Greenville Gay Men’s Chorus and Spartanburg’s Proud Mary Theatre Company, which have been told to provide additional demonstration of their artistic merit beyond what was in their applications. – The Post and Courier (Charleston)
