Stocks of unpainted, snow-white china became a tantalising canvas for avant-garde artists keen to express their utopian ideologies and rouse enthusiasm for the new socialist era, giving this delicate, bourgeois material an unexpected, almost contradictory, second life. - BBC
"His runaway résumé is also a sign of how difficult Waititi finds it to say no. And if you wonder how anyone can possibly balance so many demanding projects, rest assured Waititi is asking himself these same questions." - The New York Times
The underlying logic of brain-rot, a messy mutual entanglement between brain and culture, endures. In particular, the idea that lower, popular forms of culture might dangerously intermingle with the physical structures of the brain is remarkably persistent. - Psyche
The contract between Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and its dancers' union expires this week, and there's no new agreement in sight. The union is asking for an increase from 35 to 42 paid weeks per year and to bring salaries up to those at comparable companies. - The Arts Fuse
"I’m sure the Met is thought of as a conservative institution in some quarters, I believe this is no time to be conservative. I don’t think we are thought of as conservative any longer. I think over the period of time that I’ve been here, things have changed dramatically." - Van
Boris's deputy, Dominic Raab, took a potshot at Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner (a longtime union rep proud of her working-class roots) for going to posh Glyndebourne while railway workers were striking. Rayner (who paid all of £62 for her ticket) had a couple of choice replies. - Classic FM (UK)
Much as AI, or machine learning, has been woven into the rest of our daily lives, it's now taking a shot at resurrecting precious cultural artefacts once lost to the passage of time. - BBC
"Thanks to funding from Jack Dorsey's #StartSmall foundation and a donation from billionaire McKenzie Scott, which supplemented the city's initial investment with $3.5 million, 60 additional artists began receiving monthly $1,000 payments between October 2021 and February 2022 — funding which continues for a total of 18 months." - KQED (San Francisco)
"A number of marble tiles on the floor of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, which was turned back into a mosque in 2020 after serving as a historical museum for decades, have reportedly been cracked by heavy machinery used to clean the building last week." - Artnet
"Now that the law is on the verge of going into effect, thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court, the studios have gone quiet. ... For Hollywood in particular, Georgia's $1.2 billion tax credit for film and TV production may be too good to pass up." - Variety
"The collection of metal plaques and sculptures that decorated the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin ... that have found their way into 20 museums across Germany were mostly taken by British forces when they conquered, burned, and looted the city of Benin in 1897." - Deutsche Welle
"Funded by a $440 million bequest from Ruth DeYoung Kohler II, the Ruth Foundation for the Arts immediately enters the highest echelons of arts philanthropy. ... The foundation, based in Milwaukee, is planning to give away between $17 to $20 million a year." - The New York Times
"That is on top of the 2,500 closures since 2004 documented in earlier reports. The result is even more 'news deserts' in poorer and rural communities and a growing split between haves and have-nots in access to local news." - Poynter
It turns out that Francis Fukuyama doesn’t like what history’s end has wrought. Liberalism has been corrupted by bad actors on all sides who have lost faith in its tenets: free speech, universal tolerance, and human equality. - The Baffler
