ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

ISSUES

Culture Is Now Utterly Boring, Argues William Deresiewicz, And It’s Because Of Far More Than Wokeness

"Decent we have, sometimes even good: well-made, professional. But wild, indelible, commanding us without appeal to change our lives? I don't think we even remember what that feels like. … Art is bland and unimaginative because we have landed ourselves in the lamentable position of getting exactly what we want." - Tablet

US Supreme Court Rules Against Warhol In Copyright Case

The case, Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts v. Goldsmith, No. 21-869, concerned the limits of the fair-use defense, which allows copying that would otherwise be unlawful if it involves activities like criticism and news reporting. - The New York Times

The Art Of Collecting: Heroes Or Plunderers?

As long as objects have been plundered, countries have called for their repatriation. Yet western popular culture has muted these voices, sometimes expressing anxiety over colonial plunder but ultimately reaffirming British and American supremacy. - The Conversation

Nicholas Hytner’s Plan For Reforming British Arts Funding

The stage and film director, former head of the National Theatre in London, argues for two different (and, of course, generously financed) government funding bodies along the lines of those already in place for sports: one for elite/Olympic-level performance and one for community activities. - The Guardian

The Arts’ Power To Influence Behavior To Address Climate Change

Diego Galafassi, who researches the role of the arts in sustainability, argues the arts can foster the disposition and imagination required to address the climate crisis. Arts activities can provoke positive emotions such as hope, responsibility, care and solidarity that, in turn, inspire resilience and climate action. - The Conversation

A Student Warns Professors: We’re Already Using ChatGPT Far More Than You Realize

"In reality, it's very easy to use AI to do the lion's share of the thinking while still submitting work that looks like your own. ... It follows that massive structural change is needed if our schools are going to keep training students to think critically." - The Chronicle of Higher Education

What Happened To Great Streaming Documentaries?

The algorithm. The almighty, disgusting, algorithm, which prizes popularity above all things. So, for Netflix, the race to the bottom started with the success of Tiger King. - El País (Spain)

Stagehand And Craft Workers Come Out To Support Writers

"The writers strike on May 2 has created hardships for many in the industry, including IATSE members who have lost scheduled jobs as productions shuttered. Fundamentally, however, IATSE members are facing the same challenges of maintaining historic income levels amid historic shifts." - Variety

Harry Bass Jr. Foundation Gives $40 Million For New Arts School At University Of Texas At Dallas

"The school will be known as the Harry W. Bass Jr. School of Arts, Humanities and Technology. The largesse of the Bass Foundation follows a wave of philanthropic endowments in recent years that have dramatically reshaped the Richardson campus of a university founded in 1969." - MSN (The Dallas Morning News)

Nashville Is A Creative City. It Needs Investment

Today, as costs of living soar and working-class artists still wrestle with the remnants of the pandemic, the creative culture that has been our calling card is facing a crisis. - The Tennessean

Science Journals Are Being Overwhelmed By Fake Papers

Journals are awash in a rising tide of scientific manuscripts from paper mills—secretive businesses that allow researchers to pad their publication records by paying for fake papers or undeserved authorship. “Paper mills have made a fortune by basically attacking a system that has had no idea how to cope with this stuff." - Science

The Beaches Of Barcelona Are Washing Away (But They Were Mostly Artificial Anyway)

They're a big business, attracting Barcelonans and tourists alike, but, thanks to rising sea levels and heavier storms, the city's beaches are eroding fast. In recent years they've been replenished with dredged sand, but Catalonia's government (to city officials' dismay) says that effort is futile and should end. - The Guardian

Prop 28 Has Funded Arts Instruction In All California Schools. Now They Have To Find Enough Teachers.

"While an estimated 15,000 new arts teachers are needed statewide, (fewer) than 5,000 are currently credentialed in music, dance, theater, visual arts and media arts. ... Schools will also have to find time for arts classes in a day packed with academics and locate facilities (for) the courses." - Capitol Weekly (Sacramento)

Is Colonial Williamsburg Going “Woke”? No, Says Its CEO

Absolutely, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is expanding the stories being told there to include Blacks, Native Americans, and even LGBTQ people. CEO Cliff Fleet rejects conservative criticism, saying that the Foundation is presenting "fact-based history. … Everything is going to be what actually happened." - The New York Times

Hula Is Thriving

“This is hands down the best time to be in Hawaii, and to be able to see that the Hawaiian people are thriving: in hula, in our culture, in our language, in our different traditional practices." - The New York Times

Our Free Newsletter

Join our 30,000 subscribers

Latest

Don't Miss

function my_excerpt_length($length){ return 200; } add_filter('excerpt_length', 'my_excerpt_length');