Douglas McLennan
Doug is the editor of ArtsJournal
AJ Chronicles: It’s Getting Expensive to Prove You’re a Human Artist
We're now focused on "doping tests" to determine if artists have cheated. Rather than pee in a bottle, however, we're depending on AI detector tools and documentary proof of human creation. Did the Foundation double down to ask what's the best writing? No. They cared more about how it was made. Perhaps that's important. Of course it is. But, in a way, it's now an impossible question. Moreover, it may ultimately be the wrong question.
University Musical Society seeks Vice President and Chief Development Officer.
The next VP and CDO will be a key institutional leader and strategic partner to the UMS President, responsible for leading a comprehensive fundraising program.
The Critics Hated It. You Didn’t.
Good Morning,
Critics savaged the Michael Jackson biopic. Audiences just made it the highest-grossing biopic ever (BBC). The gap between professional judgment and what people...
Critics Might Have Hated The Michael Jackson Movie, But It’s Now The Highest-Grossing Biopic...
The recently released Michael Jackson movie has overtaken Oppenheimer as the highest-grossing biopic of all time, after taking $977m (£739m) at the worldwide box...
The AI Design Aesthetic That’s Taking Over The Internet
As Claude Design catches on among Anthropic users, a generic-design aesthetic is emerging that’s as noticeable as text-based A.I. tics such as overenthusiastic em-dash...
Why You Need To Be A Better Reader
Navigating today’s digital information landscape requires strong critical evaluation skills. Reading plays a central role in this process by serving not only as a means...
When Being A Critic Was Glamorous
If you look at these people—literally look at photos or watch footage—you discover that they were either beautiful or charismatic, or both. They all...
Did Marcel Duchamp Wreck Modern Art?
Duchamp left behind a legacy that people either love or loathe. He is known as the father of conceptual art, but his so-called ideas...
Restorers Discover How A Rembrandt Painting Was Altered
Layers of overpaint have been removed from a 17th-century painting, confirming that it was painted by Rembrandt and revealing that a turban on one of the...
How Do We Learn To Read Books Again?
I don’t necessarily believe that reading books is going to automatically fix everything in your life or anything. I do think, however, it is...
Why Are GenZers Flocking To Movie Theatres To Watch Reality TV?
Where binge-watching reality TV used to happen in the secret and safety of your own home, the popularity of “Love Island USA,” and shows...
Higher Ed Has Lost Public Trust. What To Do?
The reports differ in their diagnoses of where higher education went wrong and, by extension, of what should be done now. But their mere...
How AI Is Reviving Dying Languages
Over the months, as the learning language model is trained on bits of the language — such as an old-age French nursery rhyme —...
A New Print-On-Demand Books Program For Libraries
Ingram Library Services and Penguin Random House have announced a print-on-demand program designed to supply libraries with popular backlist titles. - Publishers Weekly
Crystal Bridges Gets a New Chief Curator
Courtenay Finn is currently chief curator and director of programs at the Orange County Museum of Art, which merged with the University of California, Irvine last...
Mel Brooks At 100
“I wanted to keep the party going. I wanted to keep the happiness and joy and explosions of laughter going into a dour part...
Why “Music You Can See” May Be The Future
I playfully ask them, “Why do you have to see it?” But I know why. They have grown up seeing music as much as...
HBO’s “The Pitt” Gives Hollywood Production Hope
The Emmy Award-winning drama has also become an urgently needed Hollywood success story at a time when much of the local film and TV industry has...
Report: Chicago’s Creative Sector Is The City’s Third-Largest Industry
The creative sector is Chicago’s third-largest industry and accounts for nearly 213,000 jobs, according to a new economic impact study released Thursday by Arts...
The Thinking Style That’s Susceptible To Extremism
I’ve found that some of the most rigid thinkers describe themselves as spectacularly flexible while the most flexible people are often unaware of their...
Getting Back To When Music Induced Physical Reaction In Your Body
Bettina Varwig's research focuses on how 17th and 18th-century listeners responded to music. “When you read about how music affected listeners in Bach’s time, their...
Suno Offers “Incubator” Program For Artists Using AI For Music
The new program, called Spark, will include grants, mentorship and marketing support, Suno said, as the company said it’s looking to “help more artists...
New Festival Redefines Lincoln Center Dance
For years, there has been too much ballet at Lincoln Center, which I say as someone who loves the form. Modern dance is part...
The Elusive Illusion Of Utopia (And Its Uses In Our Imagination)
Some patterns emerge: many utopias employ a framing device in which the narrator is accidentally or fantastically transported to a new land, and then...
What To Make Of The US Constitution When The Country Is In Turmoil?
How should we remember the American Revolution when millions march in the streets and shout “No Kings!”? When squads of masked thugs invade homes...
