In reality, when the future comes, there isn’t more time–and this is just one of many reasons why you should commit to a hobby now. – Fast Company
Author: Douglas McLennan
Is Netflix Too Quick To Cancel Series?
Exactly how Netflix makes the call on what to renew or not is something of a mystery – it never releases ratings or viewer figures that would illuminate its decisions. Instead, everything is driven by top-secret data. Netflix notoriously number-crunches every bit of viewer interaction – what you watch, when you watch it, the device you watch it on (TV, PC, phone, tablet, smart microwave, whatever), how many episodes you watch in a row; even when you pause and for how long. It then uses this to inform production choices.- The Guardian
Are We Doomed To Social Media?
One of the most intriguing debates surrounding social media is how much agency we should expect of ourselves. Can’t we just choose to put down our phones once in a while? Or has this technology hooked us so deeply that our only chance of salvation is government regulation? – Nautilus
The Movie Problem: No Blockbusters, No Business
The top 50 best-performing films in the UK box office take nearly 90% of the total box office. With more than 700 films released every year, that leaves little space for smaller, foreign language and independent films. Cinemas have high fixed costs and need a certain number of hit films to keep afloat. – The Conversation
How Whitney Balliett Created A Blueprint For Writing About Jazz
He retained the enthusiasm of a fan, but it was married to the expressive virtuosity of a master writer who could extract from his typewriter something akin to what others drew from their saxophones and trumpets. It was almost as if he were a jazz musician himself, but one who wrote essays for The New Yorker instead of soloing over “I Got Rhythm” chords. – City Journal
Why India’s Government Is Trying To Demonize Bollywood
If you had switched on news television in India in the past two months, you would have found a country obsessed with a singular subject: the taming of Bollywood, supposedly a wild, drug-addled place where horrible things happen to outsiders; India’s Gomorrah, infested with vile liberals and Muslims. This hysterical campaign of vilification and the persecution of numerous actors is an attempt to distract people from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s failure to handle the coronavirus pandemic and a sinking economy. – The New York Times
How Museum Gallery Design Will Change Post-COVID
In the future, experts anticipate bigger galleries that will be purpose-built to allow for social distancing, with the option to divide up the space with partitions as needed. Adjustable gallery architecture “is going to be important”, says Bruce Davis, a partner with the New York architects Cooper Robertson. “You’ll want spaces that can easily be changed and can adapt to changing trends in the display of art as well as the pandemic.” – The Art Newspaper
Why The Mellon Foundation Is Investing In Rethinking Monuments
“This is not a Confederate monuments project; it is a monuments project,” says Mellon Foundation president Elizabeth Alexander. That means addressing the larger issue of what values and ideas about identity are embedded in this country’s public architecture of history and memory. What is preserved, what is forgotten and what is suppressed? – Washington Post
Canadian Opera Company Shuts Down For 20/21 Season
“Earlier this summer, our team made a promise to ourselves — and to our audiences — to explore every possible option for going ahead with our season. Since then, however, the changing local health situation has made it clear that cancelling our original winter and spring programming is the only safe decision for our staff, artists, and audience members.” – Ludwig Van
Gagosian Gallery Creates Virtual Openings With Celebrities
The new initiative was devised as a way to create buzz about Gagosian exhibitions even as the gallery faces an extended period with limited in-person attendance. The online celebrity programming also helps to keep artists from feeling shortchanged by the moratorium on glitzy opening parties and swanky artist dinners that traditionally help woo collectors. – Artnet