"By gutting and rebuilding the interior (of the New York Philharmonic's home), the project was meant to break, once and for all, the acoustical curse that had plagued the hall for decades. … So, after two years and more than 270 concerts, how does the hall sound?" - The New York Times
Regular weeding — librarians' term for removing from collections books that are out-of-date, damaged, or too seldom checked out to be worth shelf space — is standard practice. Some officials have started using the process to remove books about race or LGBTQ issues, and courts will soon weigh in. - The New York Times
Not to say there isn’t trouble brewing, particularly with its unions, but the opera’s numbers, and budget, have been on an upward trajectory for a while. - The New York Times
“The number of independent bookstores has grown by 200 from 2022 to 2023, and the number has more than doubled between 2016 and 2023.” Then there’s the internet - for indies. - Salon
“The subject matter is politically fraught, but once upon a time, American film distributors and exhibitors embraced controversy — especially when it came to acclaimed movies whose controversy was inextricably intertwined with their humanity. Are these companies holding back out of budgetary reasons, out of cowardice, out of political disagreement?” - Vulture
Then Hurricane Helene hit - and hit hard. In Asheville’s long-gestated River Arts District, the president of the District’s art group describes “the current scene as ‘near apocalyptic,’ adding that ‘two-thirds of the district has been either washed away or is in rubble.’” - The New York Times
Magee was “an enigmatic and idiosyncratic artist and poet who spent four decades building a starkly beautiful monument of stone and steel in the West Texas desert that may be the most significant artwork most people have never heard of.” Then there was his alter ego. - The New York Times
An oral history: current and former Post staffers, along with people involved with the incidents in question, talk about how they come up with the headlines, reveal which ones were too much even for the Post, and flesh out the stories behind them. Yes, this includes "Headless Body in Topless Bar." - Esquire
That project meant finding trees comparable to the huge oaks used to make the original eight centuries ago, finding or reproducing the medieval tools and techniques used by the original builders (and locating workers who knew how to use them), and getting the complicated structure finished within the five-year timeline. - GQ
Figures from the arts include poet Jericho Brown, violinist Johnny Gandelsman, media artist Tony Cokes, filmmaker Sterlin Harjo, cabaret artist Justin Vivian Bond, writers Juan Felipe Herrera and Ling Ma, multimedia artist Ebony G. Patterson, choreographer Shamel Pitts, visual artist Wendy Red Star, and young people's lit author Jason Reynolds. - NPR
A beloved musical theater performer, singer-songwriter and activist who won a Tony for Hello, Dolly! (opposite Bette Midler) and an Olivier for The Book of Mormon, Creel died just two months after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. - The Hollywood Reporter
“The new owners have sold some one-of-a-kind furnishings that Wright designed for the building. And the building itself is up sale, listed on a commercial real estate auction website next to hollowed out strip malls and an empty Burger King.” - The New York Times
“This is what happens when the big fish eat all the little fish: grim times for employees, writers and, ultimately, readers. Should those of us who care about Australian books and literature be alarmed by these latest acquisitions” - Crikey
Nothing good. “Is a commercial art gallery willing to risk litigation if it dares to offer one of Warhol’s Prince or Marilyn silk-screens ‘for sale?’ What if another commercial gallery across town is offering a retrospective survey of Goldsmith’s rock star photos or Korman’s publicity shots?” - Oregon ArtsWatch
“The Internet Archive is one of the most important historical-preservation organizations in the world. The Wayback Machine has assumed a default position as a safety valve against digital oblivion.” - Wired
To protest the prison sentences given today to the original climate-protesting art vandals, three of their comrades went to the National Gallery in London and assaulted the very same painting with almost the same liquid. (This time they used Heinz vegetable soup instead of tomato.) - Artnet
Lily Janiak writes that she was reminded — very gladly — of just how many things go right to pull off a farce like this one so successfully. - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)
Considered by many the greatest British actress of her formidable generation, she won widespread admiration for such stage and screen performances as The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and Hedda Gabler and became genuinely beloved for her work in the Harry Potter films and Downton Abbey. - The Washington Post (MSN)
Abraham Bredius was director of the Mauritshuis in The Hague 1889-1919, and he bequeathed 25 Rembrandts and other Old Master paintings to the museum on condition that they be displayed. Only five are on public view, so Bredius's heirs say the Mauritshuis is violating the bequest's terms. - The New York Times
The case, Little v. Llano County, involves local citizens who sued a Texas county on First Amendment grounds for ordering certain titles removed from public libraries shelves. County officials argue that decisions about public library books count as speech by government itself, and thus aren't required to be content-neutral. - Publishers Weekly
