A number of stories this week tackled the meaning of greatness in art (even if they didn't explicitly frame it that way). A changing culture requires changing definitions of greatness, but defining "great" has often been problematic. Wealthy patrons have funded great art throughout history. And of course the wealthy have had many different reasons for their patronage. One of the strongest was … [Read more...]
The Existential Arts – This Week’s Best Reads On ArtsJournal (03.27.16)
This week's best reads hover around existential questions. What arts organizations should exist? Does truth exist? Can theatre really change anything, and should it even try? Canada's new government makes an existential bet on culture. And do our tools define art? Arts Organizations At The Existential Crossroads: Some have argued that when arts organizations have outlived their missions, they … [Read more...]
The Five Most-Interesting Stories We Collected On ArtsJournal This Week 03.20.16
My picks for the five most interesting stories we gathered this week. The Arts' Existential Challenge Arts organizations, along with every business sector trying to cope with sweeping changes wrought by the internet, are struggling with how to reinvent for the future while not alienating its past or present. "What's the answer? Some would say that reinvention invariably is brutal — in the … [Read more...]
Five Highlights From Last Week’s ArtsJournal
Researchers find links between what you watch and how you behave, how women are changing classical music, fascinating fights over who owns Picasso, a Golden Age for New York theatre, and concerns about the integrity of museums. You are what you eat, right? So are you also what you watch? Listen? Read? Makes sense. In that case, studies are quite suspicious of watching television. Researchers … [Read more...]
Five Highlights From This Week’s ArtsJournal
New York gets its first new major museum in decades. English National Opera continues its slow-motion implosion. The relationship between art and critics frays. Some counter-intuitive findings about creativity from scientists. And some cultural industries that are booming. The Met's new Breuer Building (the former Whitney Museum) opens to massive expectations. This new building will … [Read more...]
This Week’s Top AJ Stories 2.28.16
Arguably, the dominant cultural issue of our time is the changes in how people are finding and getting culture. In response, business models supporting culture and the kinds of culture being made are also changing. It also underpins debates about diversity, engagement and power. Some broad themes this week: 1. How we want the culture we want Record Profits As Concert Business Booms The … [Read more...]
Five ArtsJournal Stories From This Week You Shouldn’t Miss (2.21.16)
1. Is Funding Really The Top Issue In The Arts? Doug Borwick says no. "Insufficiency of funds will never go away. It’s a state of being in the nonprofit sector. Overfocus on this as an issue can get in the way of addressing the causes that might be contributing to it." Michael Lind writes that taxpayer shouldn't be funding the arts. "Why should writers get $25,000 for ‘travel, and general … [Read more...]
Get Your Damn Ads Out Of My Social Media! (They Don’t Work Anyway)
Anyone you know like ads? No. They're the cackling crows getting between you and what you're after. They're uninvited, unwelcome, and we do whatever we can to swat them away. So why is my social media packed with ads for the arts? What's the point? Every arts organization does social media. But much of it is essentially self-serving product promotion. "Catch this show..." "This awesome artist … [Read more...]
The “One New Thing” Rule
Adam Grant, in his new book, Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World writes about the necessity of anchoring new ideas in familiar things. To generate creative ideas, it’s important to start from an unusual place. But to explain those ideas, they have to be connected to something familiar. That’s why so many startups are introducing themselves as the 'Uber for X'. It's why when writers … [Read more...]
Editors’ Choice: ArtsJournal Stories You Shouldn’t Miss From The Past Week
1. This week in What-Does-The-Audience-Want? Cheaper tickets, for sure. Or at least the opportunity to pay what they want. One theatre converted its season to pay-as-you-want and saw a 50% increase in audience. But perhaps it's frustrating that people don't see more people like themselves on stages. "One of my frustrations with what happens on the stage a lot of the time when working class … [Read more...]