While its repressive attitude towards women’s rights has remained consistent, the Taliban's stance on the preservation of historic sites contrasts sharply with its actions in 2001, when the group destroyed the monumental Buddhas of Bamiyan. - The Art Newspaper
For some, the delight of daydreaming can turn into a curse: The fantasies become such a successful form of escape that they take over the mind, becoming compulsive and preventing the dreamer from paying attention to important facets of reality—work, school, other people. - Nautilus
How do the offices, houses, hospitals, schools, neighbourhoods and spaces that we occupy day to day affect our health? Traditionally, our understanding of how architectural design affects the human body has centred around the transmission of communicable diseases. - Psyche
"U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman — the same judge who, in March 2023, ordered several books banned by Llano County officials returned to library shelves — denied most of the Texas county’s motion to dismiss librarian Suzette Baker’s wrongful termination suit." - Publishers Weekly
Never mind that Junko Hagiwara (stage name "La Yunko") has lived and studied in Seville for 20 years. Dance critics, fortunately, have been unanimous in their approval of her work. - AFP (MSN)
"The UK‘s accomplishments in the arts are something its public prides above all else, according to a new study, while fondness for British history has dropped dramatically. The findings come from the British Social Attitudes Survey, which shows stark changes ... since it was last conducted ten years ago." - The Art Newspaper
"You pay a monthly membership fee ... that entitles you to attend however much you’d like. As with a gym or a streaming service, some people may go often; some, not at all. Regardless, the orchestra receives steady revenue, and you have full control of your calendar." - The New York Times
"Maybe the New York Philharmonic can, as Paris Opera couldn't, become a new family. But he launched his career in L.A. He grew up and matured with the L.A. Phil, where he learned much of the standard repertory. In L.A., musical vistas opened up in ways it could nowhere else." - Los Angeles Times (MSN)
"Sudanese Rapid Support Forces (RSF) fighters have reportedly looted the National Museum of Sudan in Khartoum and smuggled some of its artifacts across the country’s southern border. Backed by the United Arab Emirates, the paramilitary RSF has been at war with Sudanese Armed Forces since April last year." - Middle East Eye
"One of the most ambitious shows the museum has ever presented — six years in the making and bigger than any Whitney biennial — it tracks the development of an American art form through Ailey’s singular vision." - The New York Times
"I shall just keep at it as long as the legs and the lungs and the mind keep working," says the 85-year-old actor. As for his film role as Gandalf, "I'm not letting anyone else put on the pointy hat and beard if I can help it." - BBC
In a world that’s bleak enough already, feel-good, heartfelt comedy feels like more of a salve; earnest sitcoms seem to counteract the vitriol of the real world. But the dark comedies, by their very nature, feel truer to life than their more wholesome peers. - The New York Times
What we found leads us to believe that, when it comes to immersive art, established art museums are stuck between staying on the sidelines of a potentially lucrative market or having to make onerous investments and adjustments in their programming approach. - ARTnews
How the math nets out in the end remains to be seen. Last season’s production of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra, for instance, had a higher average ticket price, but sold just 51% of available seats. Even if all three operas this season sell out, lower ticket prices will mean lower ticket revenue this season than. - Philadelphia Inquirer
"We’re the only company in the world that performs in three different opera houses (in one city). … One-hundred-and-twenty people work at this institution. When I arrived, I understood very quickly that making sure that they are all happy is just as important as the company’s performances and artistic vision." - Pointe Magazine
