“Indigenous performance has been grossly under-reviewed and while the tide is shifting, the lens with which predominantly white critics view the work has been problematic. The lack of IBPOC voices in the media—at a time when arts’ coverage is shrinking—means white critics are often the gatekeepers of success. There is often a tone along the lines of ‘I don’t understand this, therefore it’s not valid or good art.’ Aspects like style, movement, language, and music are at risk of being dismissed.” – Vice
Author: Douglas McLennan
Artist Bans Critics Who Are Not “Indigenous, Black Or People Of Color”
“This choice might immediately strike some as counterintuitive; it certainly runs against the dominant conventions of criticism, in which theatres offer free tickets to all critics actively reviewing in their market, in exchange for reviews of their shows. Those reviews serve a number of functions including critical evaluation, historical record and support for future funding applications and, more immediately, they help get word out that the shows are happening.” – Toronto Star
How Language Mutates In The Corporate World
“No matter where I’ve worked, it has always been obvious that if everyone agreed to use language in the way that it is normally used, which is to communicate, the workday would be two hours shorter.” – New York Magazine
Study: Freedom Of Expression… Except For Arts Workers
More than eight out of ten survey respondents agreed that “workers in the arts and cultural sector who share controversial opinions risk being professionally ostracised”. The overwhelming message that comes across from more than 1,000 free text comments – running to 60,000 words – is neatly summed up by one person, who said “I often feel pressured to self-censor for fear of being ‘cancelled’ or bullied for not conforming to the orthodoxy”. – Arts Professional
Study: Arts Sector Digital Efforts Stall In Trying To Attract Audiences
Research from Arts Council England (ACE) and innovation foundation Nesta has revealed “a widening gulf” between large and small organisations’ capacity and capability to adopt – let alone maximise the potential of – digital technologies ranging from cameras and phones to distribution software and digital art. Some organisations may already feel “too far behind the adoption curve” to test new technologies, the authors say. – Arts Professional
UK Venue Demands Theatre Companies Guarantee Their Shows Won’t Offend Patrons Or Face Fine
“The management may demand in respect to its right to object to any song, speech, dialogue, business, costume or gesture that forms part of the production, that may offend the ticket buyer; which the management may represent. If withdrawal or alteration is not so made, the management reserves the right to refund ticket money at its discretion and to deduct the amount refunded from the settlement figure.”
Should LACMA Start A New Building When It’s Already $443 Million In Debt?
According to the museum’s most recent 990 tax forms, filed in 2018, LACMA is carrying $331 million in county bond debt that was used to pay for construction of the Resnick Pavilion, the Broad Contemporary Art Museum, the Pritzker Parking Garage and other projects. In addition to that debt, the museum has $112 million in other liabilities, such as accounts payable and accrued expenses. This brings LACMA’s total debt to almost $443 million. – Los Angeles Times
Salt Lake City’s Arts Funding Rewards Largest Organizations At Expense Of Small. Should The Formula Change?
That system sometimes “reward[s] bad behavior. We reward those who keep spending without regard” and sometimes “penalize organizations that take thoughtful, correct and prudent cuts to their budget and then they get less as a result.” – Salt Lake Tribune
Martin Filler: The Fascist Implications Of Trump’s Architectural Plans
This effective ban on modern architecture commissioned by the US government is horrifyingly reminiscent of Hitler’s insistence that public buildings in the Third Reich hew to the Classical tradition (though usually a stripped-down version of it) and that modern design, except for some industrial uses, was strengst verboten (strictly forbidden). – New York Review of Books
The Whitney Houston Hologram In Concert Is… Kinda Creepy
The result, at least in what producers were careful to call a dress rehearsal, is intermittently convincing. The hologram gets some of Houston’s physical tics right, and the lip-syncing — if that’s the right word for it — looks pretty real; detailed visual touches like that rippling fringe aid in the suspension of your disbelief. It certainly helps too that the live band cooks. But… – Los Angeles Times