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- Director At Palace Of Versailles Appointed To Lead Troubled Louvre
“(Christophe) Leribault, 62, is an 18th-century-art historian who previously led the Musée d’Orsay and the Musée de l’Orangerie, both in Paris, before taking over at Versailles in 2024. … He was deputy director of the Louvre’s department of graphic arts from 2006 to 2012.” – The Guardian
- COO Of Atlanta’s High Museum Of Art Resigns After $600K Goes Missing
“According to the Woodruff Arts Center, which oversees both the High and two other Atlanta art institutions, High Museum COO Brady Lum resigned after an independent review was triggered by the discovery of ‘financial irregularities’ and then identifying $600,000 specifically that was stolen.” The case has been referred to federal prosecutors. – 11 Alive (Atlanta)
- Louvre’s Director Resigns After A No-Good-Very-Bad Year
After months plagued by strikes over chronic understaffing, damage caused by a deteriorating and expensive-to-maintain building, discovery of a years-long ticket-fraud scheme, complaints of inadequate security, and the broad-daylight theft of French crown jewels, Laurence des Cars has stepped down, effective immediately. – AP
- Good Morning
Gustavo Dudamel is settling into New York and describing the city’s tempo as “prestissimo” — a conductor’s way of saying everything moves faster here (The New York Times). Arts funding, unfortunately, is not keeping pace Illinois Governor Pritzker’s proposed arts budget is flat — and a 20% increase would only restore it to where it was two decades ago (WBEZ). In Australia, the picture is arguably worse, with organizations warning that funding precarity is driving artists out of the sector entirely (Artshub).
A lawsuit accuses the Trump administration of systematically altering historical information in national parks — erasing history in the very places charged with preserving it (ARTnews). The Venice Biennale Danza has awarded its Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement to Bangarra Dance Theatre — the first time the honor has gone to a company rather than an individual, added to a lineage that includes Cunningham, Bausch, and Tharp (Limelight).
And a new critical edition of Thomas Kyd’s works has nearly tripled his known canon — with several plays previously attributed to Shakespeare and Marlowe now reassigned to the Elizabethan who arguably invented revenge tragedy (The Guardian). Authorship: still unsettled after 400 years.
All of our stories below.
- What We Lose As The Paperback Goes Away
“They had that democratic aspect to them where you can just find them anywhere and it always felt like it was the pick ’n’ mix candy-type store where there is something here for everyone, whether it’s the Harlequin romance novel or something very pulpy like a sci-fi or horror novel that you could quickly get.” – The Guardian
- Some Plays Thought To Be By Shakespeare Or Marlowe Now Reattributed To Thomas Kyd
The first critical edition of the Elizabethan playwright’s work in 125 years has expanded his canon from three plays — The Spanish Tragedy, Soliman and Perseda, and Cornelia — to eight, including Arden of Faversham (previously thought to be partly by Shakespeare) and portions of history plays Henry VI Part 1 and Edward III. – The Guardian
- The Unlikely Success Of A Strange Little Book Store In Alabama
“Our books don’t cost more,” Reiss likes to say, “but they are worth more.” – The New Yorker
- Are We Living In A Culture Of Epstein?
A different dark vision of society has emerged. Suddenly, we seem to be living in the age of Epstein. We tell ourselves that by understanding his rise to power we might understand the world. – The New Yorker
- Of Priorities, Interests, And Funding The Humanities
There’s soft coercion, where they are providing an incentive structure where they will not fund projects unless they have a social-justice angle. – Chronicle of Higher Education
- For The First Time, A Company Has Won Venice Biennale Danza’s Golden Lion For Lifetime Achievement
Until now, each Golden Lion has been won by a pathbreaking individual, from Merce Cunningham to Pina Bausch to William Forsythe to Sylvie Guillem to Lucinda Childs to Twyla Tharp. The 2026 Golden Lion has gone to Bangarra Dance Theatre, Australia’s pioneering indigenous dance company. – Limelight (Australia)
- Edward Hoagland, Prize-Winning Nature And Travel Writer, Has Died At 93
“With influences ranging from John Muir to Michel de Montaigne, Hoagland … overcame badly impaired eyesight to explore the world and … published dozens of books and magazine pieces and took in the most remote settings and extreme climates.” – AP
- Trump Administration Sued For Altering History In National Parks
The suit accuses the Trump administration of “a sustained campaign to erase history and undermine science,” so that the parks no longer do what is required by the law that established them.” – ARTnews
- The Acute Differences Between Practice And Performance
The problem is rarely a lack of musical ability. Practice alone doesn’t prepare us for the psychological demands of performance. Practice and performance are distinct, and even highly skilled musicians can remain mentally unprepared for the stage. – The Strad
- Illinois Governor’s Proposed Arts Budget Is Flat. Funding Is Less Than It Was 20 Years Ago
Arts Alliance Illinois, the statewide arts advocacy organization, is calling on the General Assembly to increase the arts budget by 20%, which it says would restore state funding levels to where they were 20 years ago. Since then, fiscal support for the arts has dipped on the state level. – WBEZ
- How Male-Male Romance By And For Women Went From Underground Niche To Industry
Or, how self-published Kirk/Spock erotica in the late 1960s led to Heated Rivalry (with Japanese comics and Thai soap operas along the way). – New York Magazine
- Is Australia’s Funding For The Arts Being Dismantled?
‘Unfortunately the funding precarity is having very real impacts on employment of artists and arts workers. The stress and uncertainty are impacting the health and wellbeing of people in the sector.’ – Artshub
- Ai WeiWei: The Threat Of Censorship In An AI-Dominated World
As we enter the AI era, human collective thought patterns, ideological structures, and the very essence of individual existence and dignity are undeniably under threat. – ARTnews
- Are We Moving Back To An Oral-Based Culture From One That Was Text-Based?
The age of orality was an age of social storytelling and flexible cultural memory. The age of literacy made possible a set of abstract systems of thought—calculus, physics, advanced biology, quantum mechanics—that form the basis of all modern technology. – The Atlantic
- One Of The World’s Major Collections Of Banned Russian Literature Is In Manhattan
“The Tamizdat Project is the brainchild of Yakov Klots, a soft-spoken, unassuming literary scholar who teaches at Hunter College. He chose the name from a Russian word meaning ‘published abroad,’ which, along with samizdat (‘to self-publish’), was one of the two main methods of evading Soviet book censorship.” – The New York Times
- Confirmed: This Country House Is Definitely A Gaudí
“Xalet del Catllaràs, an early 1900s building tucked away in the mountain forests of Catalonia, Spain, has now been officially recognized as (Antoni Gaudí’s) design.” – Artnet
- Actor Robert Carradine Dead Of Suicide At 71
Known to older viewers for his roles in The Long Riders and Revenge of the Nerds and to younger ones as the father in the series Lizzie McGuire, Carridine had been struggling with bipolar disorder for nearly two decades. – Deadline
- Berlin Film Festival Winners: “Yellow Letters”, Sandra Hüller, “Salvation”, “Queen At Sea”
Oscar-nominated İlker Çatak’s film about a Turkish theater couple persecuted by the government, Yellow Letters, took the Golden Bear for best feature. The number-two award, the Grand Jury Prize, went to Emin Alper’s Salvation; the third-place Jury Prize went to Lance Hammer’s Queen at Sea. Sandra Hüller won Best Leading Performance honors for Rose. – Variety
- Why The Uproar About The Tourette’s/N-Word Incident At The BAFTAs Isn’t Dying Down
“If you wanted to write a scabrous, over-the-top satire on liberal attitudes, you could hardly do better than use this weekend’s BAFTA ceremony. … Of course, it is complicated. A case of competing sensitivities and the now livewire issue of omissions, snubs and complicity-through-silence.” – The Guardian
- Gustavo Dudamel On His Transition From Los Angeles To New York
“I connect with both, these 17 years in Los Angeles has been amazing, I love it, the people, the community. But this is a completely different vibe. The vibe of this city is very, very alive. It’s very prestissimo: You know, it’s a very fast tempo.” – The New York Times
- No Truly Great Movie Can Stop One Battle After Another, According To The BAFTAs
The heavy-handed adaptation of Vineland won six awards, including Best Film and Best Director — and best adapted screenplay. Hamnet won best British film (& Jesse Buckley best actress), which, sure. Wunmi Motaku took home the sole acting award from Sinners, and Ryan Coogler won for best original screenplay. – BBC
- Executive Director – UMaine Collins Center for the Arts
The Executive Director manages all aspects of the Collins Center for the Arts (CCA) including programming, development, and engagement with the campus and community. This includes strategic planning and goal setting, developing and managing budgets, and the oversight of day-to-day operations. Typical hiring range for this position is $110,000 to $129,000 commensurate with qualifications and experience.
Qualifications:
Required:
- Typically has the education associated with a master’s degree and at least five years of relevant professional experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience, with a bachelor’s degree at minimum.
- Demonstrated professional experience in the arts, including experience with programming in the performing arts
- Excellent oral and written communication skills
- Highly developed interpersonal and relationship-building skills
- Experience in financial management and budget development
- Supervisory and leadership experience
- Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively, take initiative, and bring projects to fruition
- Experience in contract negotiation and booking
Preferred:
- Experience in campus engagement
- Experience in fundraising and donor relations
- Experience in community relations
- Experience in campus engagement
Other Information:
To be considered for this position you will need to “Apply” and upload the documentation listed below:
- a cover letter which describes your experience, interests, and suitability for the position
- a resume/curriculum vitae
Candidates selected to proceed to the final stages of the search process will be requested to provide a list of names and contact information for references.
Incomplete application materials cannot be considered. Materials received after the initial review date will be reviewed at the discretion of the University.
For full consideration, materials must be submitted by 4:30 p.m. EST on March 13, 2026.
For questions about the search, please contact search committee chair Sabrina DeTurk.
The successful applicant is subject to appropriate background screening.
- When “Better Than” meets “Good Enough”
The question isn’t whether AI will change our definition of creative excellence. The question is how we will engage with that change: with curiously and critical insight, with our existing values intact but our existing definitions loosely held? Or defending the current map as if it were the entire territory. - Reading Brink Lindsey’s The Permanent Problem
Brink Lindsey takes his title from one of my favourite essays, John Maynard Keynes’s “Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren” (which I wrote about here). Keynes, in 1930, wondered what lives might be like in our present. There are three big predictions in the essay, interrelated, of which I would say he got two right, which
- Report: Three Quarters Of Chicago’s Live Music Venues Are Not Profitable
“The State of Live,” newly released by the Chicago Independent Venue League, finds that nearly three out of four independent live entertainment venues in the city are currently not profitable, as they reel from rising artist fees, higher taxes and soaring labor and production costs. – Chicago Sun-Times
- Has The UK’s Era Of Free Museum Entry Come To An End?
As funding pressures deepen across the sector, and running costs increase, a policy once treated as untouchable is now under renewed scrutiny. – The Guardian
- Vandals Attack Outdoor Skating Rink At The Kennedy Center
An unidentified person poured a substance, likely some combination of motor oil and antifreeze, on a temporary ice rink built outside the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, damaging the surface and forcing a Friday performance by the Montreal-based Le Patin Libre to be canceled. – Washington Post
- Has Hyper-specialization Harmed The Humanities?
Hyperspecialization has dominated the academy over the past decades. More and more, professors and outside observers note that academics silo research into increasingly minute areas. The consequences of this practice are deleterious. – Harvard Crimson
- The Vegas Sphere Generates $1.2 Billion In Income In 2025
The company reported adjusted operating profit of $261.8 million for FY 2025, which was up 138% YoY. – Music Business Worldwide
- A Video Game That Lets Players “Repatriate” Art From Western Museums
A new South African video game lets players take back African artefacts held in western museums in a series of heists, amid a growing campaign to repatriate treasures looted by colonial armies. – The Guardian
- Does Counting The Books You Read Kill The Pleasure?
As reading is increasingly tracked and performed online, there is a growing sense that a solitary pleasure is being reshaped by the logic of metrics and visibility. – The Guardian
