“It’s been a banner year for authors who are no longer around to celebrate their success. A groaning shelf of recently published works by deceased brand-name writers, or those filling their literary shoes, shows that when it comes to books, gone does not mean forgotten. Or even unpublishable. Not by a long shot.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Early Music Superstar Jordi Savall, Afraid For His Safety, Cancels Concert In Calais’s Migrant Camp
The viola da gamba virtuoso and director of supergroup Hesperion XXI – and UNESCO Artist for Peace – was praised last week when he announced that, in honor of International Migrants Day, they would perform in the “jungle,” the makeshift settlement of refugees looking for some way across the Channel to Britain, where they hope to settle. Then Savall called off the concert, claiming that he hadn’t received sufficient assurances of security for himself and his musicians.” (in French; Google Translate version here)
The Secret Tantric Murals Of The Dalai Lama
“On an island in a pond behind the Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet sits the Lukhang Temple, or ‘Temple to the Serpent Spirits,’ a secret meditation space created by the Dalai Lama in the 17th century. … Vibrant murals covered its walls, depicting yogis in impossible-looking poses, gurus and kings, crystals surrounded by rainbows, and the vagina that gave birth to the world.”
Top Posts From AJBlogs 12.01.15
Relationships All the Way Down
Two months ago, Jill Robinson and Amelia Nothrup-Simpson of TRG Arts and I (OK: the commercial – of ArtsEngaged) began exploring the fact that almost every important facet of arts administration is (or should be) rooted in developing and maintaining relationships with external constituencies, what I would call “communities.” This post brings that series to a close. However, see the note at the end about what the future holds. … read more
AJBlog: Engaging Matters Published 2015-12-01
A Fitting and Fun Christmas Art Initiative
Many American museums ignore Christmas – except for the cards and gifts they sell in their shops and, sometimes, secular decorations. So I was pleasantly surprised to learn today of a new effort at the National Gallery … read more
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts Published 2015-12-01
Monday Recommendation: Joseph Woodard On Charles Lloyd
Josef Woodard’s book about Charles Lloyd is more akin to a long conversation than a biography. A veteran jazz journalist and practicing musician, Woodard uses his story-telling and research skills to trace the saxophonist’s life … read more
AJBlog: RiffTides Published 2015-11-30
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‘A Subversive Populist, A Celebrity Avant-Gardist’: Alex Ross On Orson Welles
“Welles causes endless trouble because of his unstable place in the American cultural hierarchy of high and low. He loved tragedy and vaudeville, Expressionist cinema and boys’ adventure stories. He converted genre vehicles like Touch of Evil into surreal labyrinths; he made Macbeth look like Gothic horror.”
#SueMeSaudi: The Twitterverse Trolls Saudi Arabia Hard For Sentencing Artist To Beheading
When the fate of Ashraf Fayadh came to the world’s attention, angry tweeters made the obvious comparison and created the hashtag #SaudiArabiaIsISIS. Then a totally offended official from the Saudi Ministry of Justice announced that it would sue anyone who dared equate the Kingdom with the extremist rebels in Iraq and Syria. What did he think would happen?
Is It Still Possible To Be A Public Intellectual In 2015?
Alice Gregory: “It’s not self-evident that one’s stances on, say, abortion and what counts as a good movie should align, but they do, remarkably, again and again. To believe in enough of these correlations, and to convince others that you are right, is the role of the public intellectual.”
Pankaj Mishra: “The public intellectual, incarnated as access journalist, policy wonk and, after 9/11, laptop warrior for liberalism and democracy, … has ended up whispering advice and encouragement to power.”
Three Decades After Her Sordid Death, Ana Mendieta Is Finally Getting Her Due
“In brief, the young and promising Cuban-American artist fell to her death in September 1985 from the 34th-floor window of her Greenwich Village apartment; her newlywed husband, legendary sculptor Carl Andre, was indicted, tried and eventually acquitted of her murder. His defense attorney argued, among other points, that Mendieta had committed ‘sub-intentional suicide.’ … Ana Mendieta’s backstory is, finally, being overshadowed by her growing artistic legacy. It may have taken the art establishment years to find her work, but once it did, the response was what Mendieta seems to inspire, generally: devotion, even obsession.
Meet The Last Of the ‘Four Great Actresses’ Of Revolutionary China
“Their glamour onstage and on screen stirred audiences during the turmoil at the birth of modern China, nearly 70 years ago. When the Communists took over, these actresses concealed their affection for Ingrid Bergman and Bette Davis, tucked away their love of fashion and steered their careers toward movies that promoted proletarian values.”
The Everlasting Temporary (It’s The Fate Of Theatre People)
“Theatre artists understand the transient nature of life. Like little gods, we create serial worlds with dazzling architecture and lush music. We set fresh beings in motion, clothed as we see fit as they strive to fulfill their hopes and destiny in the brief time allotted to them. Then we destroy that world – literally smashing it into pieces, quickly if the reviews aren’t good. Many theatre artists repeat this process hundreds of times in their own lives. I wonder how this process affects our worldview. Why does it make us cling to things less than those who pursue more conventional careers? Why do we become inured to temporariness, missing out on long-term commitments?”