Where Have All The Artist/Scientists Gone? At one time it was said that "the most innovative scientists are almost always artists, musicians or poets. But is it still true today, in the first decade of the 21st century? There are some distinguished scientists who are very appreciative and knowledgeable about the arts. But where have all the artists who are also scientists gone - are the likes of Da Vinci just one offs? There has been a rupture between science and the arts in modern times, indeed between the arts and many aspects of society, and all the video installations in the world cannot repair it." The Independent (UK) 11/18/03
Posted: 11/18/2003 7:36 am
Lost In Translation - Why Americans Don't Translate Less than three percent of all the books published in the US are translations from other countries. As for translated literary books, the number probably amounts to about 150 out of the 150,000 books published in the US each year. Whose fault is this? Let's move beyond the cliche explanations, writes John O'Brien: "There is no hope whatsoever that philanthropy in America is going to get smarter, nor are the book review editors and other media going to become more interested. If change is to be set in motion, it will have to be through the foreign governments themselves." Context 11/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 5:30 pm
Canada's Bull Market Run On Art "For at least the last six years, the resale market for Canadian art has been decidedly bullish, with the last three or four being especially buoyant. Indeed, since the spring of 1999, close to 10 paintings by Canadian artists have either come close to or surpassed the $1-million selling mark at auctions in Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary." Can the enthusiasm continue? The Globe & Mail (Canada) 11/18/03
Posted: 11/18/2003 7:20 am
Turner Colors Result Of Bad Eyesight? An ophthalmic surgeon is "convinced JMW Turner was slightly colour-blind, and this particularly affected his perception of red and blue. The blues are all wrong, either too dark or too bright, and the reds get stronger and stronger, which is exactly what you would expect. And I have no doubt that later in life he had untreated cataracts, which would have made the centre of his field of vision very blurred, with some objects at the edges in focus - and with exactly that effect of dazzling shimmering light we see in the paintings." The Guardian (UK) 11/18/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 9:51 pm
Franchise - Curator Plans French Museum Chain A French curator plans to build a chain of private museums across France. "Privately owned museums may be commonplace in the United States, but in France the government owns, subsidizes and operates all but the smallest museums. So Mr. Restellini's initiative is at the very least unusual. But he runs up against still more entrenched attitudes when he argues that it is also possible to make money out of private museums and glitzy exhibitions." The New York Times 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 6:27 pm
Is The White Cube Dead? Is the "white cube" approach to showing art still viable? "The question is not the death of the white cube, the question is how we work with artists in order to find the right way to make each work of art a glorious experience, and there is no general rule here: some need just a space in the mind; others a web site; some a sumptuous hall of mirrors; some a white cube." The Art Newspaper 11/14/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 5:54 pm
WTC Site: The Stars Come Out With the addition of architects Norman Foster, Jean Nouvel, and Fumihiko Maki designing for the site of the World Trade Center, (joining Daniel Libeskind, David Childs and Santiago Calatrava)the Lower Manhattan site is beginning to look like a playground of archi-stars. The Art Newspaper 11/14/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 5:48 pm
Power Struggle In Moscow Concert Hall Moscow has a shiny new $200 million performing arts center - its first new concert hall in 100 years. "With the conductor and violinist Vladimir Spivakov as the center's president, a rich array of events has taken shape. Yet behind the glass and metal exterior, a power struggle as harsh as the confrontation between Kremlin prosecutors and the oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky has unfolded, rooted in Spivakov's acrimonious departure as music director and principal conductor of the Russian National Orchestra last year." International Herald Tribune 11/18/03
Posted: 11/18/2003 7:31 am
Too Many Bad Songs - Is That The Problem? Music executives are prodding acts to limit the number of tracks on their CDs in a bid to raise fans' perceptions of the value of albums. 'There's been a tendency to overload CDs because the technology permits it. The final choice will always be the artist's, but I feel — and consumer research bears it out — that the public thinks albums have too much filler'." Los Angeles Times 11/18/03
Posted: 11/18/2003 7:27 am
Singing America Morten Lauridsen is one of the most performed composers in America. "Lauridsen's music is sung in churches and concert halls throughout America and increasingly in Europe. Most critical attention to contemporary art music focuses on premieres by renowned orchestras or avant-garde instrumental specialists such as the Kronos Quartet. Yet their audiences are dwarfed by the number of Americans who listen to and perform choral music. More than 28 million Americans sing in a quarter-million choirs, most of them in churches but also in school and college ensembles--and their directors are hungry for new and challenging works that hone their singers' skills, yet remain accessible to mass audiences." OpinionJournal 11/18/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 5:16 pm
Mickey Mouse Turns 75 "The years have dulled Mickey's personality, a result of him becoming the corporate face of a multibillion-dollar entertainment empire. In the process, Mickey also has become a cultural Rorschach test -- a symbol of American optimism, resourcefulness and energy or an icon of cultural commodification and corporate imperialism." Dallas Morning News (AP) 11/18/03
Posted: 11/18/2003 7:00 am
California - Art On 3 Cents A Year State support for the arts in California is low, after recent budget cuts. How low? "To better understand how low public support has sunk, consider that Canadians spend an annual $145 per capita to fund the arts; Germans, $85; New Yorkers, $2.75; Mississippians, $1.31; Californians, 3 cents. 'That's gum balls,' says Barry Hessenius, director of the council. Three gum balls a year." Sacramento Bee 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 5:43 pm
Want State Arts Support? Run Artists In a speech, Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm apologizes for declining state support for the arts. "About this disconnect between art and politics: It is true that politics ends up flattening down the artistic edge. For in this line of work, you are either a zero or a sum. You are a Democrat or a Republican. You are pro-this or anti-that. There is little room to be nuanced, textured, deep or subtle. So, I think that we just ought to elect more artists. Not just wrestlers and movie stars, either, but musicians and painters, dancers, filmmakers and poets. Just don't run for governor for another 7 years." Detroit Free Press 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 5:38 pm
Rediscovering Sartre "When Jean-Paul Sartre died in 1980, some 50,000 people turned out for the funeral of France's most famous modern philosopher. Six years later his lifelong companion, Simone de Beauvoir, joined him here in Montparnasse. The stream of people coming to pay tribute has never really dried up. Growing interest in Sartre is by no means an exclusively French phenomenon. Strangely enough, his philosophical writings may now be receiving more scrutiny in the United States than in his native country." Chronicle of Higher Education 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 10:18 pm
Computers Have a Go At Figuring Out Shakespeare Did Shakespeare write his own plays? A group of scientists is using computer analysis to find out. The method depend on comparing patterns of at least 30 common words. "You otherwise hardly notice such words but with a computer you can detect patterns of usage and they become important. You find that individuals have their own kind of profile." Discovery 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 10:03 pm
Charlotte Rep AD Resigns Michael Bush has resigned as artistic director of Charlotte Repertory Theatre. "The artistic quality of Michael's product has been nothing short of superb. Unfortunately, during these challenging economic times, we failed to attract a sufficient audience to support the increased costs." Backstage 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 8:39 pm
"Producers" Sets Broadway BO Record Just last week stories were being written about The Producers losing steam at the Broadway box office. Then Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick agreed to return to the roles they originated. Presto - a box office record. "The show sold some 6,000 tickets in less than 90 minutes, both in person and through Telecharge, after the box office opened at noon. By 10 p.m., when the St. James's box office closed, more than 39,000 tickets had been sold, the producers said, and the day's take stood at nearly $3.5 million. Orders were still being taken through Telecharge. The previous record for one-day sales was also held by "The Producers," which sold $3.3 million in tickets on the day after the show's opening in April 2001." The New York Times 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 7:56 pm
Potter Past 250 Million Sales of the Harry Potter books have passed the 250 million mark worldwide. "The series has been sold in more than 200 countries and translated into 60 languages from Hindi to Ancient Greek. The fifth book, The Order of the Phoenix, sold 1.78 million copies on its first day in the UK alone." BBC 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 5:59 pm
Poetry And The $100 Million Gift - A Year Later Ruth Lily's $100 million bequest to Poetry Magazine last year has resulted in nicer offices and financial security for the publication. But the magazine certainly hasn't gone on a spending spree. "In some ways, there is an oil-and-water mix to poetry and money. Poets just are sort of ill at ease around a lot of money. This thing has been a shoestring operation for years. I don't think anyone wants to get too fancy. You know, it tends to make me nervous to go out and buy a lamp or something." The New York Times 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 7:50 am
Canadian True Crime Writer Faces Charges For Publishing Canadian true crime writer Stephen Williams is facing 94 charges and has had his computer confiscated by Ontario police after defying a publishing ban with his two books analyzing the case of the brutal sex killings of Canadian teenagers. The Writer's Union of Canada has called for a public inquiry into the police treatment of Williams and his wife, award-winning humor author Marsha Boulton, saying that the actions of the authorities are an unwarranted attack on freedom of expression." Publishers Weekly 11/17/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 7:20 am
Australian Movie Slump The Australian film industry has had one of its worst years in a long time. "Record low levels of foreign finance contributed to a fall from 30 to 19 features, the fewest for eight years. Their total value slumped from $131 million to $49 million." Sydney Morning Herald 11/18/03
Posted: 11/17/2003 9:42 pm
