Matthew Westphal – Page 1992 – ArtsJournal Wayback

Why Are So Many Old Art Exhibitions Being Revived?

The Armory Show of 1913, Hitler’s 1937 “Degenerate Art” exhibition, MoMA’s The Photographic Object 1970, the 1966 show that introduced America to Minimalism, the infamous human zoo from 1914, and numerous others – why recreate entire assemblages by other curators, and why now? (Yes, of course there are good reasons.)

Eastern Ukraine Museums Warned To Hide Their Collections

“Culture officials in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions in eastern Ukraine have ordered museums to put their most valuable pieces into storage, and some institutions have closed to the public … Ukraine’s culture ministry has also asked that the media refrain from ’emphasising objects of cultural heritage’ to avoid their being targeted [in the ongoing fighting].”

John Oliver Isn’t Just Making Fun Of Current Events, He’s Making People Care About Them

“Last Week Tonight has found a way to take a seemingly complicated issue, break it into understandable parts – and then rebuild it. … And Oliver is not just influencing viewers; he’s actually having an effect on the people he’s criticizing.” His viewers crashed the FCC’s website, and he’s been denounced by the Government of Thailand.

Flash Flood Damages Historic Theater In Death Valley

“The historic Amargosa Opera House suffered serious flood damage after heavy rain struck the tiny town of Death Valley Junction, Calif., last week.” More than a foot of water “ripped through the theater, warping the original wood floors of the 91-year-old [venue].”

The Latest Group To Use Drones: Archaeologists

“Archaeologists around the world, who have long relied on the classic tools of their profession, like the trowel and the plumb bob, are now turning to the modern technology of drones to defend and explore endangered sites. And perhaps nowhere is the shift happening as swiftly as in Peru.”

Paris’s Musée Picasso Finally Has A Reopening Date

“After five years of delays and difficulties, culminating in a public quarrel and the firing of its president in May, the museum’s reopening is finally set for the artist’s birthday, Oct. 25. … The renovation has doubled the public space, modernized outdated facilities and added a new entrance, a multimedia auditorium and a Cubist garden with geometric topiary trees.”

Uncle Jack Charles – Stolen Child, Ex-Con Heroin Addict, Movie Actor, Grandfather Of Australian Indigenous Theatre

He was raised by a white foster mother and stumbled across his blood family by chance at age 17. Began learning acting at 19. Was rejected for a starring Aboriginal role in favor of a South Asian actor. Co-founded Australia’s first aboriginal theatre company. And that was just his life before 1980.

What Do We Do With Our Old, Disused Airports?

There are more out-of-use terminals around than you’d think, some of them architectural landmarks (Saarinen’s TWA terminal at JFK) and all of them expensive. Jonathan Glancey looks at what’s been tried, from the triumphant repurposing of Berlin Tempelhof to Saarinen’s building to poor old Montreal Mirabel.

Nicholas Kristof: Don’t Abandon The Humanities; They Still Matter

“University students focusing on the humanities may end up, at least in their parents’ nightmares, as dog-walkers for those majoring in computer science. But, for me, the humanities are not only relevant but also give us a toolbox to think seriously about ourselves and the world.”

Author: Matthew Westphal