“For her whole career, Rivers has been self-consciously pushing boundaries. In recent years she’s often spectacularly pushed the wrong ones, but we shouldn’t forget that, at one time, she was pushing the right ones – and doing it virtually alone.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
The Brilliant Cellist Embracing The Devil’s Music
“Today on The Gist, cellist Maya Beiser tells us how her rebellious streak led her out of the classical concert hall and into the arms of classic rock.” (podcast)
Just Like Old Times: With Russia’s Political Opposition In Disarray, Kremlin Goes After Cultural Figures
“Dissenting cultural figures have become the new focus of pro-Kremlin witch hunts, with state media treating them as a political force and accusing them of treachery. The practice has echoes of Soviet times, when cultural figures perceived as a threat to the regime … were subjected to vicious smear campaigns.”
Designing Technology That Lies To Us
“If you don’t know it already, you should: Many crosswalk and elevator door-close buttons don’t actually work as advertised. … Similarly, the progress bars presented on computer screens during downloads … maintain virtually no connection to the actual amount of time left … But these examples offer only a hint of what we’re liable to see in the near future. … Perhaps now is a good time to ask: How deceitful should our new technologies be?”
Sleep-Deprived People Have Shrinking Brains (Uh-Oh)
“If you have ever felt markedly stupider after a long period of sleep deprivation, a new study may hint at a reason. Years of sleep difficulties seem to be associated with a brain that shrinks in size over time, according to a new paper published online today in Neurology.”
Frederick Wiseman Is Moving From Ballet Documentaries To Creating An Actual Ballet
As part of his residency at NYU’s new Center for Ballet and the Arts, Wiseman and choreographer James Sewell are collaborating on a stage work based on – no, not his dance documentaries, but his 1967 fim Titicut Follies, about the Bridgewater State Hospital for the Criminally Insane in Massachusetts.
Bram Stoker’s Great Grandnephew And A Dutch Nude Art Photographer Say They’ve Found The Site Of Castle Dracula
They’re serious. (They’re even working on a Dracula travel guide.)
Top Posts From AJBlogs 09.04.14
Is It Time To Break Up Overcrowded Museums?
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts | Published 2014-09-05
Universal mother
AJBlog: Performance Monkey | Published 2014-09-04
So you want to see a show?
AJBlog: About Last Night | Published 2014-09-04
James Ellroy: The Demon Dog is Back
AJBlog: CultureCrash | Published 2014-09-05
[ssba_hide]
Where Will The Arts Be In 20 Years? Michael Kaiser Predicts …
“We are at the beginning of a major change in the way people receive their arts, and I believe online will become the source and a major competitor to live arts. And it appears to me that we will see a bifurcation of arts organizations, with the large ones, who will make revenue based on selling performances online, and local organizations who service the community. I am very nervous about the midsize regional organization.”
Planned Ground Zero Arts Center Drops Frank Gehry Design
But nobody told Gehry – who, when notified by a reporter, said of the center’s CEO, “She says I build models. She doesn’t have a clue as to what I do or how I do it. It’s fine. It’s a new group. They should do what they want. I don’t want to go where I’m not wanted.”