Whitney 2004: Anxious Art For A Dangerous Age Canadian journalist Sarah Milroy visits the Whitney Biennial looking for the state of the American soul, and finds an awful lot of anxious uncertainty: "If I had to choose a word for the show it would be 'tremulous' -- a tremulous biennial for a time of dramatic change, trauma and anxiety. A sense of fragility and flux prevails, reflecting the United States' sense of an uncertain future and its own unsteady place in the international arena." The Globe & Mail (Canada) 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 6:18 am
Why Shouldn't Science Be Pretty? "In 1993, two computer scientists devised a Java applet (PDF) to make energy fields not only visible, but really rad-looking. Each year, John Belcher at MIT holds the 'Weird Fields' contest among his physics students to see who can use the program to create the most aesthetically pleasing image by writing simple formulas for electromagnetism." The point isn't to create the most useful or efficient formula - just to come up with the one that looks the best. So what's the point? None, really, but Belcher believes firmly that his students benefit from a well-rounded approach to the world, and if that means using science to get them to create art, so be it. Wired 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 5:28 am
Living Up London's Art "London is home to many of the world's leading dealers, auction houses and museums, and Britain accounts for a quarter of the global art market worth $23.5 billion a year. But until now the city has never tried to promote its huge range and depth of expertise cohesively. That will change today, with the announcement of a major new initiative to celebrate London's unique place in the international art market." The Telegraph (UK) 03/17/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 9:15 pm
Saltz: Another Whitney Biennial... Ho-hum Jerry Saltz visits the Whitney Biennial and comes away whistling ho-hum. "The art world is dying to like the 2004 Whitney Biennial. The opening was a lovefest. Previews in magazines and newspapers essentially implored, 'Can't we all just get along and love the biennial?' Nearly all trotted out the cliché 'the show everyone loves to hate.' Disliking exhibitions is seen by some to be disloyal or obstructionist. This is traceable to the fact that in America today criticism and even civil disagreement are implicitly discouraged." Village Voice 03/16/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 7:33 pm
Orchestra of the Future? If there can be said to be a single American orchestra which has consistently been at the forefront of efforts to revitalize the classical music industry, the orchestra would have to be the San Francisco Symphony under music director Michael Tilson Thomas. From innovative recordings to fearless marketing techniques to an embrace of technological synergy, the SFS/MTT partnership may be providing a crucial example for other American ensembles to follow as the 19th-century art strives for relevance in the 21st. The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 6:40 am
Mountain Laurel Exec Resigns The chief executive of the Pennsylvania-based Mountain Laurel Center for the Performing Arts, which was seeking to be the new summer home of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra before collapsing under a mountain of debt this winter, has resigned shortly before a meeting of the center's bondholders. Blaney was hired five weeks before Mountain Laurel's opening weekend in 2003, after the center's first CEO, Christopher Dunworth, was unexpectedly fired. The Daily Intelligencer (AP) 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 5:46 am
- Previously: Good Idea, Lousy Execution The short, sad story of the Mountain Laurel Center is a lesson in the risks of overreaching in the service of a great idea, writes Dan Majors. The project was underfunded from the start, and last summer, construction was still ongoing when the Pittsburgh Symphony showed up for the gala opening concert. Now, with Mountain Laurel officials looking for a state bailout only seven months after that gala, one has to wonder why no one addressed the financial precariousness of the project earlier. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 03/10/04
The Indies Gather In Austin Even as the majority of music industry heavies watch their album sales slip ever further down the profitability chart, and continue to tilt at the file-sharing windmill, thousands of independent musicians, producers, and fans are descending on Austin, Texas for a music festival with a decidedly pro-innovation slant. "South by Southwest, or SXSW, has a special following among artists and fans who are interested in shaping the future of the media industry. The bands and artists who appear at SXSW don't have Britney's marketing budget, so they turn to the Net to attract attention and find new fans. In essence, these artists and fans are vanguards." Wired 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 5:22 am
Renaissance Painter Composed Music For His Painting A Renaissance scholar has discovered that the musical notes painted by Filippino Lippi in a famous 15th Century painting "Madonna and Child with Singing Angels is original music probably composed by the painter himself. "The first several notes of the composition are exactly the beginning notes of a popular Renaissance song, 'Fortuna Desperata.' After the first few notes, however, the piece does not resemble Fortuna." Discovery 03/16/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 9:21 pm
The End Of Hip-hop? "For a genre that is 25 years old this year, hip hop has little to show for its maturity. Repetitive images of material excess and recidivism continue to dominate the commercial rap market, and while production techniques have evolved to become the most sophisticated in pop music, rapping itself - the essence of hip hop culture - has not developed in at least a decade. As the ideas have dried up, celebrities and industry investors have been forced to promote the most sensational aspects of the culture. Even loyal fans are now claiming that hip hop's message to the disenfranchised is one of confusion and self-destruction. For a musical form that once claimed to offer meaning, and even hope, this must spell the end." Prospect 03/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 7:50 pm
Florida Orchestra Woes Continue "Despite slashing musicians' pay and bringing popular new music director Stefan Sanderling onboard, the Florida Orchestra's financial woes continue. A promised endowment campaign has yet to be announced, and the strain is starting to drive some players to other orchestras." St. Petersburg Times 03/16/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 7:33 pm
One Hurdle Down, Two Giant Chasms Left To Clear The Florida House of Representatives has voted overwhelmingly to restore $21 million in annually guaranteed arts funding to the state budget, one year after cutting the subsidy in order to balance the budget. But the restoration still faces a decidedly rocky path to victory, with key Republican legislators vowing to fight it in the State Senate, and Governor Jeb Bush threatening a veto if it ever reaches his desk. Miami Herald 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 5:33 am
- Previously: Florida Legislature Considers $21 Million In Arts Funding A bill providing $21 million in state funding for the arts is being considered by the Florida legislature this week. "It marks the end of a one-year funding hiatus begun when the Legislature emptied the state’s arts trust funds, leaving no money for cultural grants. Florida’s museums and other arts centers have more than $8 million in private donations from as far back as 1999 that they can’t touch, awaiting matching state money." The News-Press (Florida) 03/15/04
Tough New European Intellectual Property Law "The European Parliament has approved a controversial piracy law that would allow local police to raid the homes and offices of suspected intellectual-property pirates, search their financial records and even freeze suspects' bank accounts. The European Union's directive covers selling everything from pirated CDs and counterfeit toys to fake Chanel and Viagra." Wired 03/16/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 7:17 pm
Downloaders Aren't Pirates, Court Told People who share digital files of music and movies aren't pirates, an internet advocacy group tells a Canadian judge. "The music industry's “war against file sharing,” if successful, will mean “significant collateral damage” to the rights and interests of Internet users, a federal court was told Monday." The Globe & Mail (Canada) 03/16/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 5:21 pm
Ode To Spalding Gray "Spalding opened the door for hundreds of artists to make live events out of their own experience; he gave permission for the theater of Tim Miller, Holly Hughes, Lisa Kron, Dael Orlandersmith, and so many others. It was a theater of identity—personal politics—a way to unearth stories that had not been told. Now we take the solo performance form as a fact, but Spalding was the original. The master. Sliding down his own slippery slope of a life, taking us with him." Village Voice 03/16/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 7:36 pm
Boston's Theater Explosion "In the next 18 months, eight new theaters with more than 4,000 seats will open in Greater Boston, ranging from the 2,500-seat Boston Opera House, large enough for Broadway blockbusters, to intimate 'black boxes' designed for experimental theater and dance." In a city long short of good performance space, the building boom will give Boston audiences a stunning array of choices for the first time. Boston Herald 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 6:06 am
Theatre - The New Journalism? Suddenly, there are all sorts of plays in London telling true stories - theatre as journalism - or journalism as theatre. "The curtain rises on a new hunt for reality - or semblance of reality." But is this theatre? Journalism? Both? And what happens to the facts in the process? The Guardian (UK) 03/17/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 7:03 pm
Because, As We All Know, Poetry Sells Newspapers A strange phenomenon in Italy has caught the attention of publishers worldwide. At least one day a week, many Italian newspapers have begun offering discounted books of poetry and prose to anyone who buys the paper, and the promotion has been a rousing success. "The sales have helped raise circulation modestly and have given an unexpected infusion of cash to newspapers." The strategy itself - using culture to sell the mainstream media - doesn't seem to raise too many eyebrows in Italy, but in America, where consumers frequently have to be bribed to pick up a book, it seems like a complete reversal from the usual relationship between media types and artists. The New York Times 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 6:48 am
O Queens, My Beloved Verseless Home... The much-maligned borough of Queens, in New York City, is in need of a new poet laureate. "The winner must be someone who has lived in Queens for at least five years and has written, in English, 'poetry inspired by the borough.'" The trouble is, in three months of searching, the borough has yet to find a single writer who fits that description. The New York Times 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 6:02 am
Meet "Lit Idol" The literary version of Pop Idol was crowned in London this week. "Paul Cavanagh was named winner of Lit Idol, a contest designed to unearth Britain's 'hottest fiction talent'. Cavanagh, from Ontario, Canada, secures representation by the literary and media agency Curtis Brown after winning the contest, the first of its kind, with his work, entitled Northwest Passage. The 1,466 entries were asked to submit up to 10,000 words from the opening chapters of a novel and a two page synopsis when they entered the competition." London Evening Standard 03/17/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 9:08 pm
The Papers, Dr. Watson! A trove of Arthur Conan Doyle's papers - including a record of the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes - has been uncovered. "The archive, which contains more than 3,000 items, including letters, notes, manuscripts and artefacts, disappeared more than 40 years ago during legal disputes over his estate." The Guardian (UK) 03/16/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 7:07 pm
Order Of Phoenix Wins People's Choice Award JK Rowling's Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix has won this year's WH Smith People's Choice Book Award. "Some 148,000 readers cast votes via book stores, the internet and libraries to select winners in eight categories." BBC 03/16/04
Posted: 03/16/2004 4:49 pm
Fighting The FCC "Recording artists joined radio hosts yesterday in blasting proposed broadcast indecency legislation that could subject 'nonlicensees' - including hosts, artists, guests and callers - to huge fines for inappropriate utterances. Current House and Senate bills would let the FCC fine individuals up to $500,000 per violation. FCC rules now place most of the burden for violations on stations and owners, with a ceiling of $11,000 for individuals. In the past, the FCC has almost never fined individuals." New York Daily News 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 6:32 am
Canadians Like Their Public TV The premier of Ontario has proposed privatizing TVOntario, the province's public broadcaster, as well as a few other government-run companies. But so far, the public isn't on board with the plan... The Globe & Mail (Canada) 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 6:15 am
Not Bad For A Guy Who Just Lost His Job Former BBC chief Greg Dyke, forced out of his position at the head of the UK's public broadcaster following the furor over reporter Andrew Gilligan's story accusing the Blair government of "sexing up" a dossier concerning Iraqi weapons capabilities, has been honored with a lifetime achievement award by the Royal Television Society. BBC staffers rallied to Dyke's side when he resigned in January, and much was made of how popular a leader he was. BBC 03/17/04
Posted: 03/17/2004 5:14 am
- Previously: Down But Not Out Greg Dyke was "a fantastically popular director general," and that may have been part of his undoing at the BBC. But despite the humiliation of being accused of shoddy journalism by Lord Hutton, the BBC is circling the wagons, and firing back at Prime Minister Tony Blair and his supporters. One former BBC staffer has publically accused the government of "trying to grind an independent broadcaster into the ground. The staff are determined that it won't happen." The Guardian (UK) 01/29/04
