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Le Monde Launches An English-Language Version

"The leading French daily, with 425,000 digital subscribers to date, plans to reach 1 million paying readers in the next two to three years, with a quarter of them reading the (online) English version, Le Monde's chairman said this week." - Bloomberg Quint

Caracas’s Museum of Modern Art Starts To Emerge From Venezuela’s Years Of Chaos

After two years' closure, and with both storage/maintenance of the collection and staff salaries desperately underfunded, five of the museum's 13 display rooms have reopened. Employees and volunteers are working to get the impressive collection (e.g., Picasso, Chagall, Dalí, Calder, Botero) back in shape. - The New York Times

When Crosswords Became A Craze (100 Years Ago)

The modern “word-cross” appeared for the first time in print in the December 21, 1913 edition of New York World’s FUN Supplement. Section editor Arthur Wynne, trying to fill the Christmas insert, drew inspiration from his native England. - Zocalo Public Square

The Mythologies Of The Writer’s Blank Page

If all works of literature are haunted by the ideal forms of which they are but imperfect instantiations, then the blank book symbolises the refusal to compromise authorial vision. - Aeon

Can African Museums Transcend Colonial History?

Is an African museum, designed by an African architect, capable of undoing this level of institutional violence? Can it go beyond a restaging of the artefacts’ abduction? If not for an imperialist agenda, what is the role of the museum in a post-colonial world? - Hyperallergic

How Classical Music Influences Heavy Metal Pop

One can be forgiven for failing to see any common threads between these two seemingly divergent entities. However, a closer look reveals evidence to the contrary. - WQXR

The Bridgerton Factor: Viewers Flocking To English Country Estates

The regal properties are reporting a “Bridgerton factor” as people enchanted by the baroque interiors and bucolic gardens of the hit show decide to visit its real life landmarks. - The Guardian

How Neuroscience Is Failing To Explain How Art Works

“If you define neuroaesthetics as the use of neuroscience to explain art and aesthetic experience, then it is not surprising that neuroaesthetics fails: art just isn’t a phenomenon (neurological or experiential) to be explained by neuroscience, psychology, or any other empirical science.” - Nautilus

The Young Muslim Who Defied Her Conservative Community To Master Indian Classical Dance

Mansiya V.P. was three when her mother took her and her older sister to Bharatanatyam lessons. The family persisted despite opposition from the local mosque committee, and, at 27, she's pursuing a doctorate in Bharatanatyam. Now a Hindu temple has refused to let her dance there because she's Muslim. - BBC

Media Critic Eric Boehlert, 62, Killed On Bicycle

A frequent commentator on television and radio, as well as a prolific writer, Mr. Boehlert never shied away from searing critiques of what he saw as bias in the mainstream press and the circular impact of media on politics. - The New York Times

How #MeToo Has, And Hasn’t, Changed Theatre

"Not only were narratives of sexual abuse – long regarded as too risky for commercial theatre audiences – being listened to, they were actively being sought out. ... But the fundamental changes that #MeToo promised have not been as meaningful or lasting as many in the industry hoped." - The Guardian

The Rot Of American Higher Education Was Put On View Last Week

The unspoken secret had been fleetingly exposed: Free labor is a fact of academic life. “These arrangements are common in academia.” - The New York Times

The Brass Bands Of Wales Are At Risk Of Fading Away

"There are fears Wales could lose its brass band tradition after player numbers plummeted during the pandemic. Bands from across the country said they had lost members, with fewer younger players joining." - BBC

The Case For Nationalizing An American Cultural Treasure

Like the Delta blues or Yellowstone National Park, baseball is as indelibly American as it is painfully uncommercial. Left to fend for itself, the game will eventually disappear. The New York Times

At 70, Both Bill T. Jones And Eiko Otake Are Making Some Of The Best Dance Of Their Careers

"(They're) two celebrated dance artists with different styles, temperaments and cultural backgrounds. What they have in common is willingness — hunger, really — to take on weighty issues. Otake has been illuminating the environmental damage caused by nuclear accidents. Jones is intimately connected to the struggle against racism." - The New York Times

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