ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

ISSUES

Will Rethinking Liberal Arts From A Conservative Tradition Make Them Better?

Classical education is premised on the idea that there is objective truth, and that the purpose of school is to set kids on a path toward understanding it. - The New Yorker

Tech Bros Are Such Drama Kings

"It’s hard to know whether this performative strain in tech culture reflects something essential about the industry.” But … could they just, please, for the rest of us, stop? (Maybe join a community theatre?)- The Atlantic

A Second Man Has Been Charged In The Theft Of Judy Garland’s Ruby Slippers

And it’s appropriately dramatic: "The indictment says Saliterman knew they were stolen, and that he threatened to release a sex tape of a woman and 'take her down with him’ if she didn’t keep her mouth shut about the slippers." - Seattle Times (AP)

What Happens When You Let A Computer, Or Close To It, Write A St. Patrick’s Day Rom-Com

Whew, Netflix, why? "Irish Wish is a thinly veiled Trojan horse for the conservative agenda, a crypto-fascist work of art cluttered with right-wing dog whistles and dialogue that could have only been written by a malevolently programmed artificial intelligence." - Vulture

London’s Biggest EuroVision Screening Party Cancels To Protest Israel’s Participation In The Contest

Rio Cinema said, "With own slogan in mind, we hope that we can all be United By Music again soon. We will continue to organize fundraising events for the charities we support, including Doctors Without Borders and Medical Aid for Palestine." - Variety

Authors Withdraw From PEN Festival Over Its Response To The War In Gaza

Lorrie Moore, Maaza Mengiste, and many others signed a letter criticizing PEN America for not doing enough to highlight 'the scale and scope of the attacks on writers in Gaza’ … and drew a contrast with the organization’s forceful condemnation of the war in Ukraine." - The New York Times

Canada’s Independent Cinemas Say They’re In Crisis

And they call for more help: "About two-thirds of the 67 respondents said they need increased public funding in order to stay open, with many saying they would need about $50,000 annually for the next three years to close immediate gaps." - CBC

Philanthropy As A Business Model

First, and most simply, philanthropy is most certainly a business model, or at least the core of such a model, because it is at the heart of financing nearly every private university and almost all of the country’s leading cultural institutions, from museums to the performing arts, as well as most organized religious institutions. - Second Rough Draft

Government Regulators Need AI Experts. They Just Can’t Pay (Well) For Them

As governments spin up new AI programs, regulators around the world are urgently trying to hire AI experts. But some of the job ads are raising eyebrows and even chuckles among AI researchers and engineers for offering wages that, amid the current AI boom, look pitiful. - Wired

Ranking U.S. States By Arts Vibrancy

"Key insights: States with higher proportions of rural population tend to have lower levels of arts vibrancy – with some notable exceptions. States ranking higher on arts vibrancy generally have lower poverty rates; but having low levels of poverty doesn’t guarantee a top arts vibrancy ranking." - SMU Data Arts

The End Of The Subscription Era?

The inflection point is coming for Substack, OnlyFans and any platform where creators are reliant on the largesse of their audiences. When creators realise the dream of financial success and celebrity is sputtering, so too will the impression that this is a radical new future for content creation fade. - Medium

Why Toronto’s Festivals Are Struggling

Toronto is a city of festivals, but two years after pandemic restrictions were lifted, even big names in the sector are struggling to attract audiences, pay down debt and meet steeply rising costs of production. - Toronto Star

Smithsonian Finds (For The Second Time) A Founding Director For American Women’s History Museum

"Elizabeth Babcock … will head a (yet-to-be-built) museum that was shaken last summer by the withdrawal of its incoming founding director, Nancy Yao, following a Washington Post investigation of her handling of sexual harassment allegations at a New York museum." - The Washington Post (MSN)

Philadelphia’s New Mayor Names A New Arts And Culture Chief

"A trained soprano with degrees from Temple University and the University of the Arts, (Valerie) Gay, 58, was most recently deputy director of audience engagement and chief experience officer at the Barnes Foundation. … Arts leaders said they were thrilled with Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s appointment." - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)

Is Social Relevance At The Core Of The Arts?

Thanks to Arts Council England’s recently published analysis on opera and music theatre, ‘relevance’ is back on the agenda. But the report and its conclusions do not show true understanding of art and artists. - The Stage

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