main

I supposed this could be a continuing series. The latest entrant in far-fetched categories for auction records is the "world record for a dress made for a film"---the "iconic Givenchy gown made for Andrey Hepburn in the 1961 film, 'Breakfast at Tiffany's,'" selling yesterday for $887,680 at Christie's, London. If we create sufficiently narrow categories (Abstract Expressionist … [Read more...] about Department of Dubious Auction Records

This is another one of those days when CultureGrrl gets herself into trouble---by biting the hand that feeds her. There are two recent developments at the Wall Street Journal that concern me: First, the new WSJ.com Video feature (clickable on the front page of the subscribers-only online WSJ): Watch the latest interviews featuring your favorite WSJ editors and reporters. Catch … [Read more...] about WSJ Blurs Distinction Between News and Corporate Promos—Part I

You might have noticed this, buried in the long "Letter From the Publisher" (L. Gordon Crovitz) on the Op-Ed page of yesterday's Wall Street Journal: The paper (for which I am writing an assigned piece right now; hence, today's light posting) plans to "double the number of pages devoted to leisure and arts in the Personal Journal section, giving our critics more opportunity as … [Read more...] about Changes Afoot at WSJ “Leisure & Arts”

My sense of James Wood, from interviewing him, listening to him speak and reading about him over the years---first in his director's post at the St. Louis Art Museum and then during his 24 years at the helm of the Art Institute of Chicago---is that he conceives his artworld role not so much as that of a brilliant scholar, a high-profile spokesman or a social schmoozer, but as a … [Read more...] about Solid Wood: Profile of the Getty’s New President

… [Read more...] about COMING TOMORROW: AN OPINIONATED PROFILE OF THE GETTY’S NEW PRESIDENT

Here are the first artists anointed by the United States Artists program. Each of the 50 artists gets $50,000. (There are 51 photos because Bill Frisell and Jim Woodring applied as a team but are pictured separately.) Among the sponsors of visual artist grants are Agnes Gund, Edythe and Eli Broad and Target Corp. As one might expect from a program that asks artworld … [Read more...] about First Winners of United States Artists Grants Announced

Now, here's an inspired choice---a veteran heavyweight in the museum field, who can be expected to restore the administrative focus to the museum---the trust program that ought to be first among "equals," but was shortchanged under deposed president Barry Munitz. He also has the class and finesse to help deal with those prickly Italians. Click the link below for the full press … [Read more...] about James Wood Named President and CEO of J. Paul Getty Trust

I've been inspired to be insipid by music critic Terry Teachout's shocking self-exposure in his recent blog post---his list 15 songs of "dubious artistic merits" that he enjoys. Can we ever feel the same again about his music criticism in Commentary? CultureGrrl readers already know that my taste in music is eclectic, if not chaotic. I also have a shocking confession to make: I … [Read more...] about Critical Lapses: CultureGrrl’s Greatest Hits

As I've mentioned, I can't blog about the Boston ICA, because the Wall Street Journal wants my first words on the subject. But I CAN link you up with some good photos from the press preview on Artblog.net. Scroll down, and you'll see that Franklin Einspruch caught me in my signature pose, notebook in hand, during the tour given by director Jill Medvedow and architect Ricardo … [Read more...] about Sneak Peak at Boston ICA (and CultureGrrl!)

When I got back to my Boston hotel room Friday evening, I switched on the radio and heard: She left the suds in the bucket and the clothes hanging on the line. As promised, country music had taken over the classical music frequency. So I fled to the new location of WCRB, and, just as Geoff Edgers had indicated, the reception was so poor that I had to reposition my radio to find … [Read more...] about Boston Broadcasting Bozos: The Continuing Saga

Pop trumps country trumps classical: So goes the radio format pecking order, it appears. Remember my previous posts (here and here), where I lambasted the pop-music format change of KZLA-FM, which had billed itself as "America's most listened-to country station"? Well, when I checked into my Boston hotel yesterday, I tuned my radio to the classical music station, WCRB, whose … [Read more...] about Broadcasting Bozos, Continued

Yes, art-lings, I'm in Boston, about to walk over to the new Diller Scofidio + Renfro-designed facility for the Institute of Contemporary Art. But, alas for faithful CultureGrrl readers, if I blog about the ICA, my WSJ editor will shoot me. So you'll have to wait for my take, to appear on the "Leisure & Arts" page. I did hit the ground running on arrival yesterday, and I CAN … [Read more...] about BMFA Needs Changing of the Guards

I need to get far away from the world of allegedly stolen antiquities: to a museum that has barely begun to form its own permanent collection, most of which is art from the 21st-century; to a place whose scheduled opening was delayed (but not nearly as delayed as the Museum of Modern Art's new education and research wing). I'll bet you've all got it. What you may NOT have is … [Read more...] about Where in the World is Lee Going?

Tom Hoving, director of the Metropolitan Museum when it was considering a joint acquisition with oil mogul J. Paul Getty of the celebrated Greek bronze statue of an athlete, discusses the historical background of the current ownership controversy: The old man, J. Paul, insisted before he purchased the bronze (to share with the Met in exchange for the Met's lending the … [Read more...] about BlogBack: Tom Hoving on the Getty Bronze

Christian Kleinbub, assistant professor of art history at Ohio State University, published a pro-Getty letter to the editor in yesterday's LA Times. Here's a somewhat more pointed letter that he wrote on Tuesday to CultureGrrl: I write to share my own feelings on the recent negotiations between [Italian Culture Minister Francesco] Rutelli and American museums, for I believe it … [Read more...] about BlogBack: Christian Kleinbub Takes the Getty’s Side