1. Photos From The Venice Biennale Can't make it to Venice to make the Biennale this summer? Here's a gallery of photos of artwork from the Biennale to look at... BBC 06/15/03
   
   
2. NY Philharmonic's Carnegie Gambit: Not Good For America Mark Swed writes that while the New York Philharmonic's move from Lincoln Center to Carnegie Hall might make financial sense for the orchestra, it isn't necessarily good for New York music or for musicians elsewhere in America. "What is good for business isn't necessarily good for art, the community or the country. This is a dire move, and its ramifications will be felt throughout America. At the heart of it are two important questions: Whom does an orchestra, or any major arts institution, serve? And what is its social responsibility?" Los Angeles Times 06/15/03
   
   
3. Six Shows Closing On Broadway Broadway saw its usual post-Tony box office bounce last week. But the awards also signalled the closing of six shows this month as producers realized they were on the downside and not likely to survive. Backstage 06/18/03
   
   
4. Art Vigilantes Threaten To Tear Down Art A piece of public art in Sydney that some residents call "poo on sticks" has so infuriated protesters that a group of "art vigilantes has threatened to tear it down. "The group, which calls itself the Revolutionary Council for the Removal of Bad Art in Public Places, has set a three-month deadline for the offending sculpture to be whisked away. If the deadline is not met, it says, the work will be defaced or destroyed. 'We have blowtorches, angle grinders and bolt cutters, and we will use them if necessary'." The Independent (UK) 06/17/03
   
   

5. Why Are High-Culture Audiences So White? Why are there so few African-Americans at Pittsburgh's high-culture events? Audiences for the symphony and for theatre are mostly white, as they are in most American cities. One reason? "You're comparing a population that has half as much income as another group, and it's not surprising that you'd see this showing up in [the spending of] discretionary income," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 06/19/03