ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

Today's Stories

Disney And DeSantis Settle Their Differences

Disney on Wednesday reached a settlement in Florida and will no longer seek to retain its self-governance of Walt Disney World, a stunning turn in a battle with DeSantis that stretched more than two years. - Politico

Podcasting Audience Grows To 100 Million

Podcast listening continues to set new records as nearly 100 million American adults now say they listen to podcasts on a weekly basis. - Inside Radio

Theatre And Journalism Are In Trouble. So Who’s Talking?

Amid these daunting financial and industry realities, what does forging a path in theatre criticism even look like these days? Where does one go to learn best practices? To learn how to craft an expert pitch? Is it all learning by doing? If so, how and where do you get started? - American Theatre

The World’s 100 Most-Popular Museums For 2023

This year we can finally answer: things are back to normal. Mostly. Our exclusive survey reveals that in 2023 many of the world’s largest museums recorded very similar numbers to those of 2019, the last full year before the Covid lockdowns began. - The Art Newspaper

The Cultures Of Theatre Censorship

In recent months, there have been concerns both in the UK and in Europe that legislation ostensibly designed to address hate speech might also place limitations on free speech. - The Stage

NY Museum’s Former Financial Officer Files Suit Over Firing Over Expense Claims

According to the lawsuit filed by Denise Lewis, who worked at the museum from 2017 until her firing in January of this year, the museum’s director sought to use the institution’s funds to pay for personal expenditures during a vacation in Mexico last October. - The Art Newspaper

Ten Typical Behaviors Of Creative People

Creative people are uncomfortable with the status quo. For them, a creative life is one of options, opportunities, and alternatives. They do not always accept what others do; rather, they seek multiple responses and views. - Psychology Today

The Artist Who Makes His Inks And Pigments From Guns

"For more than five years, (Thomas) Little has performed this kind of alchemy, purchasing handguns and automatic rifles from pawn shops and dissolving the iron-heavy parts in acid to form iron sulfate, the basis for writing inks and artists’ pigments in deep blacks, rusty reds and warm ochres." - CNN

Protecting Michelangelo’s “David”

The Galleria dell’Accademia’s director, Cecilie Hollberg, has positioned herself as David’s defender since her arrival at the museum in 2015, taking swift aim at those profiteering from his image, often in ways she finds “debasing.” - AP

Hiring Party Operatives As Paid Pundits For TV News — Has It Become More Trouble Than It’s Worth?

Well, obviously not for Fox News, but otherwise, NBC News's rapid hiring-and-firing of former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel after an on-air staff rebellion (because she peddled 2020 election disinformation) makes observers wonder if hiring a professional election-denier "is just too costly for a self-respecting newsroom with a public service charter." - AP

John McWhorter: How To Teach Hard Lessons

Note that all of these centerings would be about things most consider good, and even crucial, but the question would be why the university, as a general rule, should make any of those things the essence of what an education should consist of. - The New York Times

At 60, Alessandra Ferri Prepares To Leave The Stage For Good — And Start Running The Vienna State Ballet

On retiring: "At this stage in my life, dancing takes up the whole day, for my body, the training. I have the energy for one thing or the other." On becoming the boss: "I’m actually really enjoying the management part, … which for me is quite surprising!" - Bachtrack

Trend? Titles That Seem Familiar

Perhaps the frisson of cleverness (I know where that’s from!), or the flip-side cringe of ignorance (I should know where that’s from!), is enough to spur you to buy a book, the way a search-optimized headline compels you to click a link. - The New York Times

Without Warning, A Linchpin Of The Entire U.S. Indie-Publisher Ecosystem Has Closed

Small Press Distribution, founded in 1969, was the country's only not-for-profit literary distributor. It served roughly 400 small. independent presses and was known for getting unknown or experimental books to stores and to readers. Titles it distributed won over 100 literary awards in the last five years alone. - KQED (San Francisco)

The AI-Created Junk Polluting Our Culture

It’s unclear what the ethical line is between scam and regular usage. Some A.I.-generated scams are easy to identify, like the medical journal paper featuring a cartoon rat sporting enormous genitalia. Many others are more insidious, like the mislabeled and hallucinated regulatory pathway. - The New York Times

“My Three Right Hands” — Without These Women, Holst Could Never Have Composed “The Planets”

As amanuenses, copyists, assistants, rehearsal pianists, and performers, Vally Lasker, Jane Joseph and Nora Day did the countless necessary parts of the work of composition which Holst, who suffered from neuritis in his hands, was physically unable to do. - The New York Times

Hong Kong’s Enormous New Arts Center Needs To Find New Funding, And Soon

The 99-acre West Kowloon Cultural District was given a start-up fund (called an "endowment" there) of HK$21.6bn (US$2.8bn) by the enclave's government in 2008. That fund is projected to run out one year from now, potential rental income is limited, and no further state funding has been announced. - The Art Newspaper

Actor Louis Gossett Jr., 87

He was the first Black man to win a Best Supporting Actor Oscar (in 1983 for playing the drill sergeant in An Officer and a Gentleman), and won an Emmy for his role as Fiddler in the 1977 series Roots. His last screen role was in the 2023 remake of The Color Purple. - AP

Life Magazine Is Being Revived (Yes, As A Print Publication)

"Bedford Media, the holding company founded by model and entrepreneur Karlie Kloss and her husband, investor Josh Kushner, has acquired the publishing rights to Life from Dotdash Meredith. Bedford says that Life will be relaunched as a print magazine, with a 'vibrant' digital and video presence." - The Hollywood Reporter

Artist Robert Moskowitz, “A Rare Bridge Between Abstract Expressionism And Minimalism,” Has Died At 88

"Beginning in the late 1970s, (he) began painting the Empire State Building, the Flatiron Building and, most indelibly, the World Trade Center. Those three buildings appear over and over through the decades, … (with) the shimmering, self-contained quality of letters or numbers." - The New York Times

By Topic

Ten Typical Behaviors Of Creative People

Creative people are uncomfortable with the status quo. For them, a creative life is one of options, opportunities, and alternatives. They do not always accept what others do; rather, they seek multiple responses and views. - Psychology Today

The AI-Created Junk Polluting Our Culture

It’s unclear what the ethical line is between scam and regular usage. Some A.I.-generated scams are easy to identify, like the medical journal paper featuring a cartoon rat sporting enormous genitalia. Many others are more insidious, like the mislabeled and hallucinated regulatory pathway. - The New York Times

For Centuries The Dutch Have Fought Back The Water. In Climate Change Maybe Cities Float Above The Water?

 “I think some bowls should be full,” he said, suggesting that flooding the land would amount to little more than a natural evolution of a man-made system, not unlike the way skyscrapers transformed cities a century ago. “It’s just an update to the machine.” - The New Yorker

Toymakers Design Human Characteristics Into Their Work. And AI?

Large language models can seem to do more than what we ask them to; they exhibit something that we might call creativity if a human did it. What is actually happening in these moments? - The New Yorker

How Your “Digital Twin” Will Change The World

In the last decade, thanks to advances in AI, the internet of things, machine learning and sensor technologies, the fantasy of digital twins has taken off. BMW has created a digital twin of a production plant in Bavaria. Boeing is using digital twins to design airplanes. - Noema

Physical Activity Is Good For Fitness. It’s Even Better For Creativity

Often, when we hear about the benefits of physical activity, researchers are really referring to the benefits of fitness – the product of regular and repeated physical activity. But what’s interesting about creativity is that it appears to be enhanced through the very act of moving the body. - The Guardian

Disney And DeSantis Settle Their Differences

Disney on Wednesday reached a settlement in Florida and will no longer seek to retain its self-governance of Walt Disney World, a stunning turn in a battle with DeSantis that stretched more than two years. - Politico

John McWhorter: How To Teach Hard Lessons

Note that all of these centerings would be about things most consider good, and even crucial, but the question would be why the university, as a general rule, should make any of those things the essence of what an education should consist of. - The New York Times

Trend? Titles That Seem Familiar

Perhaps the frisson of cleverness (I know where that’s from!), or the flip-side cringe of ignorance (I should know where that’s from!), is enough to spur you to buy a book, the way a search-optimized headline compels you to click a link. - The New York Times

Hong Kong’s Enormous New Arts Center Needs To Find New Funding, And Soon

The 99-acre West Kowloon Cultural District was given a start-up fund (called an "endowment" there) of HK$21.6bn (US$2.8bn) by the enclave's government in 2008. That fund is projected to run out one year from now, potential rental income is limited, and no further state funding has been announced. - The Art Newspaper

Florida’s New Budget Increases Arts & Culture Funding By Over 60%. However, …

"Allocations for fiscal year 2025 total $93.9 million, funding 669 different arts and culture projects or organizations. Just $32 million of that is allocated for grants overseen by the Florida Department of State’s Division of Cultural Affairs, while the rest is earmarked for what are known as member projects." - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Can This Record Producer’s Book Really Turn You Into An Artist?

The Creative Act is three books in one, really: a how-to for aspiring or faltering artists, an opening-up of Rubin’s own bag of tricks as a producer/cosmic facilitator, and an account of the spirituality that defines his method. - The Atlantic

“My Three Right Hands” — Without These Women, Holst Could Never Have Composed “The Planets”

As amanuenses, copyists, assistants, rehearsal pianists, and performers, Vally Lasker, Jane Joseph and Nora Day did the countless necessary parts of the work of composition which Holst, who suffered from neuritis in his hands, was physically unable to do. - The New York Times

Can There Truly Be “New” Opera Without Saying Goodbye To The Old?

In short: There can be no history of operatic modernity that is not also a memorial, no production of new opera that does not account for generic death, no opera written that does not, in its own way, undertake the work of mourning. - Van

It’s Been 35 Years Since The Pacific Symphony Last Picked A Music Director. The World Has Changed

Carl St.Clair is currently the longest-serving music director of a major American orchestra, and under his baton the ensemble has flourished: It’s now the largest U.S. orchestra founded in the last 50 years. - CultureOC

What’s The Secret To The Songs That Make People Want To Dance? Syncopation, Says New Study

But not too much — just "a moderate level of syncopation to the point where our brain can still extract the periodic beat from the melodies. (These researchers) contend that the brain is essentially trying to anticipate upcoming beats amid a melody’s syncopation. The result is the impulse to dance." - Scientific American

London’s Wigmore Hall Announces Endowment Campaign To Eliminate Its Public Funding

The venue has an annual grant of £344,206 from Arts Council England (ACE) but John Gilhooly, Wigmore Hall’s artistic and executive director, says that it is “already 97% self-funded”. - The Guardian

Inside San Francisco Symphony’s Budget Issues And What They Say About Priorities

Given these “significant financial pressures,” where does the multimillion-dollar Davies renovation project stand, certain to pose challenges even if the cost of application and licensing is covered by donation? - San Francisco Classical Voice

The World’s 100 Most-Popular Museums For 2023

This year we can finally answer: things are back to normal. Mostly. Our exclusive survey reveals that in 2023 many of the world’s largest museums recorded very similar numbers to those of 2019, the last full year before the Covid lockdowns began. - The Art Newspaper

NY Museum’s Former Financial Officer Files Suit Over Firing Over Expense Claims

According to the lawsuit filed by Denise Lewis, who worked at the museum from 2017 until her firing in January of this year, the museum’s director sought to use the institution’s funds to pay for personal expenditures during a vacation in Mexico last October. - The Art Newspaper

The Artist Who Makes His Inks And Pigments From Guns

"For more than five years, (Thomas) Little has performed this kind of alchemy, purchasing handguns and automatic rifles from pawn shops and dissolving the iron-heavy parts in acid to form iron sulfate, the basis for writing inks and artists’ pigments in deep blacks, rusty reds and warm ochres." - CNN

Protecting Michelangelo’s “David”

The Galleria dell’Accademia’s director, Cecilie Hollberg, has positioned herself as David’s defender since her arrival at the museum in 2015, taking swift aim at those profiteering from his image, often in ways she finds “debasing.” - AP

Workers’ Strike Closes Toronto’s Largest Art Museum

"Hundreds of employees from the Art Gallery of Ontario gathered on the picket line as they began strike action Tuesday. After months of negotiations, union members ... voted to reject the gallery's latest contract offer, saying it doesn't address wage increases, protections for part-time workers and contracting out positions." - CBC

Kennicott: The Baltimore Bridge And Its Symbolism

The loss of the bridge is first a human tragedy. Then it is an economic shock, with a radiating toll that won’t be fully understood for years. But it’s also a powerful symbolic shock, given the metaphorical power of bridges as a form of connection. - Washington Post (MSN)

Without Warning, A Linchpin Of The Entire U.S. Indie-Publisher Ecosystem Has Closed

Small Press Distribution, founded in 1969, was the country's only not-for-profit literary distributor. It served roughly 400 small. independent presses and was known for getting unknown or experimental books to stores and to readers. Titles it distributed won over 100 literary awards in the last five years alone. - KQED (San Francisco)

Life Magazine Is Being Revived (Yes, As A Print Publication)

"Bedford Media, the holding company founded by model and entrepreneur Karlie Kloss and her husband, investor Josh Kushner, has acquired the publishing rights to Life from Dotdash Meredith. Bedford says that Life will be relaunched as a print magazine, with a 'vibrant' digital and video presence." - The Hollywood Reporter

Shortlist Revealed For First-Ever Women’s Prize For Nonfiction

The finalists are Doppelganger by Naomi Klein, Code Dependent by Madhumita Murgia, Thunderclap by Laura Cummings, All That She Carried by Tiya Miles, A Flat Place by Noreen Masud, and How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair. - The Guardian

Michael Ondaatje On His First Poetry Collection In 25 Years

"The real question I had “was could I write poems anymore? … I didn’t want to miss out on a certain pensiveness, and a certain relationship with language, that only poetry can demand." - Literary Hub

AI Translators And The End Of Language Instruction

Total enrollment in language courses other than English at American colleges decreased 29.3 percent from 2009 to 2021, according to the latest data from the Modern Language Association, better known as the MLA. In Australia, only 8.6 percent of high-school seniors were studying a foreign language in 2021—a historic low. - The Atlantic (MSN)

Examining Shakespeare’s Words

To praise Shakespeare is also to praise his audience. Not just the one that filled the Globe during his lifetime, but the subsequent generations, too, that have cherished and preserved him, that have commented on him and imitated him. - New Criterion

Podcasting Audience Grows To 100 Million

Podcast listening continues to set new records as nearly 100 million American adults now say they listen to podcasts on a weekly basis. - Inside Radio

Hiring Party Operatives As Paid Pundits For TV News — Has It Become More Trouble Than It’s Worth?

Well, obviously not for Fox News, but otherwise, NBC News's rapid hiring-and-firing of former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel after an on-air staff rebellion (because she peddled 2020 election disinformation) makes observers wonder if hiring a professional election-denier "is just too costly for a self-respecting newsroom with a public service charter." - AP

Another Boston Public Media Outlet Warns Of Layoffs

Senior management at GBH, which under the call letters WGBH operates both an NPR affiliate and a TV station which produces a number of national PBS shows, says it is "facing financial headwinds. … While final decisions have not yet been made, layoffs are not off the table." - The Boston Globe (MSN)

How The Hulu Merger Is Changing The Ways Disney Works

Yes, Hulu is just a tile. But that tile also seems to represent something bigger inside of Disney: the full Disney Plus-ification of everything, as the tech and strategy it built over the last few years percolates out to everything else Disney does. - The Verge

How The “Star Trek” Franchise Keeps Going After 58 Years

"Since the original series debuted in 1966, … the Star Trek galaxy has logged 900 television episodes and 13 feature films, amounting to 668 hours. … Every single person I spoke to for this story talked about Star Trek with a joyful earnestness as rare in the industry as a Klingon pacifist." - Variety

Is It True That Quality TV Is Done For?

"There's definitely been a contraction after years of it feeling like TV was undergoing this crazy expansion." - BBC

At 60, Alessandra Ferri Prepares To Leave The Stage For Good — And Start Running The Vienna State Ballet

On retiring: "At this stage in my life, dancing takes up the whole day, for my body, the training. I have the energy for one thing or the other." On becoming the boss: "I’m actually really enjoying the management part, … which for me is quite surprising!" - Bachtrack

Choreography On Broadway Is No Longer Broadway-Style Choreography

"Today’s shows are increasingly using movement makers from genres outside the musical theater world altogether, like experimental dance (David Neumann, Annie-B Parson, Raja Feather Kelly), commercial dance (Sonya Tayeh, JaQuel Knight, Keone and Mari Madrid), modern dance (Camille A. Brown), and physical theater (Steven Hoggett)." - Dance Magazine

How The Head Of Juilliard’s Dance Program Is Shaking Things Up

In 2018, she became the prestigious New York conservatory's first woman of color to head the dance program — and the youngest person to do so. Graf Mack, 45, is shaking up what is taught and how to make art dance more relevant. - NPR

“Information Is Power” — Dance Data Project’s Founder Talks About Five Years Of Collecting Information About Gender Inequity

"We are here to provide data and analysis which journalists, funders and advocates can deploy to create a more interesting dance world. Artistic-director candidates have used our reports to demand pay equal to their male peers. Dancer representatives say they negotiated a 40% salary increase based on our work." - Classic Chicago Magazine

Ohad Naharin On Ballet Ireland’s Cancellation Of His “Minus 16” Because He’s Israeli

"From the abyss of my sadness witnessing the ongoing catastrophe ... I am writing to you. If the act of cancellation would have helped the Palestinians' cause I would boycott my own show. It is obvious that this cancellation does nothing to reduce the suffering of people in our region." - The Irish Times

Could Classical European Ballet Actually Return To Iran?

The Iranian National Ballet, founded under the Shah in 1958, was disbanded by the new Islamist regime in 1979. The story of one of the company's last dancers has been adapted into a new work by choreographer Tara Ghassemieh, who hopes, yes, to bring it to Iran someday. - The New York Times

Theatre And Journalism Are In Trouble. So Who’s Talking?

Amid these daunting financial and industry realities, what does forging a path in theatre criticism even look like these days? Where does one go to learn best practices? To learn how to craft an expert pitch? Is it all learning by doing? If so, how and where do you get started? - American Theatre

The Cultures Of Theatre Censorship

In recent months, there have been concerns both in the UK and in Europe that legislation ostensibly designed to address hate speech might also place limitations on free speech. - The Stage

Standup Comedy Flourished In China During Lockdown. Now The Government Crackdown

Flippant references to China’s military, like those to top leaders, are considered off limits in official life, and such taboos have been codified under Xi, with a new criminal code outlawing the slander of political “heroes and martyrs.” - The New Yorker

“Merrily We Roll Along” And The Nature(s) Of Long-Term Friendship

"Frank's and Charley's very different definitions of what constitutes a friend offers an astringent alternative to our culture’s sometimes treacly, overly simplistic portrayal of the bond. Even more than Broadway, Hollywood has fetishized friendship to (a fault)." - Los Angeles Times (MSN)

“Mama Mia” Star Informed She’s Being Replaced By AI Voice

Musical theater star Sara Poyzer publicly shared a screenshot of an email she received from an unnamed production company which read: “Sorry for the delay—we have had the approval from BBC to use the AI generated voice so we wont need Sara anymore.” - The Daily Beast

What’s An Intimacy Director To Do On A Musical About Ladyparts With Chompers?

"(In Teeth,) a show in which violence begets vengeance, … it’s a lot to endure, for both biter and bitee. … Campy or not, choreographing the many scenes of intimacy and assault required extraordinary sensitivity." Enter Crista Marie Jackson. - The New York Times

Actor Louis Gossett Jr., 87

He was the first Black man to win a Best Supporting Actor Oscar (in 1983 for playing the drill sergeant in An Officer and a Gentleman), and won an Emmy for his role as Fiddler in the 1977 series Roots. His last screen role was in the 2023 remake of The Color Purple. -...

Artist Robert Moskowitz, “A Rare Bridge Between Abstract Expressionism And Minimalism,” Has Died At 88

"Beginning in the late 1970s, (he) began painting the Empire State Building, the Flatiron Building and, most indelibly, the World Trade Center. Those three buildings appear over and over through the decades, … (with) the shimmering, self-contained quality of letters or numbers." - The New York Times

Ex-Art Dealer Inigo Philbrick Is Out Of Jail, Trying To Figure Out What’s Next

In 2021 he pled guilty in an enormous art-fraud case and was sentenced to seven years in prison. This past January he was released into home confinement. He's now searching for — if not redemption, a way to earn a living, as Hollywood fights over the rights to his story. - Vanity Fair

Richard Serra Made Modern Sculpture Exciting — By Creating The Feeling That It Might Fall On You

Sebastian Smee: "As an artist, he was no bully. Rather, he was a physicist. He wanted you to know, and to feel in your bones, that weight isn’t just a thing — it’s a force. It’s mass times acceleration. As such, it carries an inherent threat." - The Washington Post (MSN)

Richard Serra, 85

Serra’s most celebrated works had some of the scale of ancient temples or sacred sites and the inscrutability of landmarks like Stonehenge. - The New York Times

Sundance Loses Its Leader After Only Two Years

Joana Vicente came to Sundance from the Toronto International Film Festival and arrived as COVID had pushed the festival online for 2021 and again in 2022. - The Hollywood Reporter

AJ Premium Classifieds

Segerstrom Center for the Arts seeks VP of Programming & Production

Reporting to the President and CEO, the VP of Programming and Production oversees and coordinates the design and implementation of all programming across all the Center’s stages

Artistic Director – Alabama Shakespeare Festival

As a beloved Alabama arts institution, ASF broadens the cultural identity of the South by producing classics, Shakespeare, contemporary plays, musicals, theatre for young audiences, and exciting new works.

We Are Now Accepting Entries To The 17th International ARC Salon...

Over $130,000 in cash awards and international recognition through partnerships with prestigious magazines, galleries, museums, and more, don’t miss your chance to compete.

AJClassifieds

Saint Louis Art Museum seeks Chief of Philanthropy & External Affairs

The Chief of Philanthropy and External Relations (CPER) will...

Assistant Teaching Professor of Dance

The Department of Theatre & Dance at UC San Diego invites exceptional dance educators and dance makers who emphasize interdisciplinary methodologies and whose research is rooted in African and Afro-Diasporic experiences and practices that are varyingly multiracial, trans-geographic and intersectional.

Executive Director, Institute for Contemporary Art

The ICA has become a focal point of Richmond’s energetic arts district, serving as a nexus for creativity and inclusion, where innovative thinking and transformational ideas are drawn from a spectrum of disciplines.

Director of Artistic Operations

The Knights are a collective of adventurous musicians dedicated to transforming the orchestral experience and eliminating barriers between audiences and music.

ABA Seeks Member Advisor

Member Advisors play a critical role in managing and deepening relationships with ABA member organizations.

Seeking Artistic Director

The AD oversees and maintains the artistic excellence of the organization, ensuring that the Fountain continues to be seen as one of the premier theaters in Los Angeles while advancing the national reputation of the organization.

Vice President of Communications, Marketing, & Sales

MIDLAND CENTER FOR THE ARTS (MIDLAND, MI) is in search of a Vice President of Communications, Marketing, & Sales

Associate Vice President of Advancement Operations

The AVP is responsible for leading administrative and financial operations, database use and management, data integrity, software use and management, and development of procedures, protocols, and processes.

What’s An Intimacy Director To Do On A Musical About Ladyparts With Chompers?

"(In Teeth,) a show in which violence begets vengeance, … it’s a lot to endure, for both biter and bitee. … Campy or not, choreographing the many scenes of intimacy and assault required extraordinary sensitivity." Enter Crista Marie Jackson. - The New York Times

Richard Serra Made Modern Sculpture Exciting — By Creating The Feeling That It Might Fall On You

Sebastian Smee: "As an artist, he was no bully. Rather, he was a physicist. He wanted you to know, and to feel in your bones, that weight isn’t just a thing — it’s a force. It’s mass times acceleration. As such, it carries an inherent threat." - The Washington Post (MSN)

Sagrada Familia In Barcelona Will Be Finished (Sort Of) In 2026

With the completion of the Chapel of the Assumption in 2025 and the last and highest of its six towers the following year, construction of architect Antoni Gaudí's masterpiece will conclude after 140 years, just in time for the centennial of his death. Well, complete except for the enormous, controversial staircase. - CNN

France’s Most Popular Living Singer Will Perform At The Paris Olympics — And This Is A Major Controversy

"The possible choice for the opening ceremony of Aya Nakamura, a superstar French-Malian singer whose slang-spiced lyrics stand at some distance from academic French, has ignited a furor tinged with issues of race and linguistic propriety and the politics of immigration." - The New York Times

AI Is Upending The Foundations Of Copyright Law

Copyright is even embedded in the US Constitution as a tool “to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts.” Now generative AI is destabilizing the foundational concepts of copyright law as it was originally conceived.

Activists Unfurl A Massive Quilt For Gaza On The Steps Of The Met

"As the quilt was spread out across the museum’s main entrance, activists encircled the display, carrying signs that read ‘We See Genocide,’ ‘Let Gaza Live,' and 'None Of Us Are Free Until Palestine Is Free.' The protesters also broke into Palestinian dabkeh folk dance." - Hyperallergic

Germany’s Culture Wars Are ‘Infiltrating’ Berlin’s 18th-Century Palace Replica

Inside, the Stadtschloss is publicly funded. Donors control the exterior. "A Christianised dome was hoisted atop the palace in 2020, complete with a band of text, compiled by 19th-century King Friedrich Wilhelm IV, calling on all peoples to submit to Christianity.” Now? Old Testament prophets. - The Observer (UK)

The UK’s Cultural Jewels Are In A Lot Of Financial Trouble

The budgetary alarm bells are ringing for fabled institutions, including the Royal Shakespeare Company, says a new arts lobbying group. "The new campaign frames culture as part of the crucial infrastructure of any successful country, let alone one that enjoys Britain’s arts and entertainment track record." - The Observer (UK)

People Hate The Idea Of Car-Free Cities Until They Live In One

Going car-free is a lot harder than it seems. Not only has it led to politicians and urban planners facing death threats and being doxxed, it has forced them to rethink the entire basis of city life. - Wired

M. Emmet Walsh, One Of Hollywood’s Busiest And Most Distinctive Character Actors, Is Dead At 88

"With his distinctive lumbering form and droll delivery, Walsh was an ideal supporting player. A master of off-kilter comic delivery and dogged edginess, he excelled at roles that dwelled in the darker corners of humanity. No matter whom he played, he made a colorful impact." - The Hollywood Reporter

Artist Sets Up Ladies-Only Lounge In Museum. Man Sues For Gender Discrimination. Artist Is “Absolutely Delighted.”

The installation at Tasmania's Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) is by Kirsha Kaechele, wife of museum founder David Walsh, a math prodigy who made his $200 million fortune by gambling. Kaechele said in court that "(men's) experience of rejection IS the artwork." - The Guardian

San Francisco Symphony Musicians Publicly Urge Board To Keep Salonen As Music Director

Not only have they released an open letter calling on the orchestra's Board of Governors to reverse the cuts that motivated Salonen not to renew his contract, the musicians leafleted Saturday's audience, urging listeners to contact Board chair Priscilla Geeslin and CEO Matthew Spivey. - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)
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