“The Cooper-Hewitt is announcing the unprecedented acquisition of an artifact you will never find encased in a plexiglass cube or sequestered in a climate-controlled storage facility. In a physical sense, it doesnt even exist: It’s a piece of software, an app called Planetary, and it heralds the museum’s first foray into intangible items.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Santiago’s Museum of Contemporary Art Reopens Following Theft
The main branch of the Chilean museum was burglarized during a major open-air concert in August 15. Two butterfly prints by Damien Hirst were stolen and have now been recovered; additional security is in place.
What Isaac Asimov, Back In 1964, Thought 2014 Would Look Like
“Past predictions about the future oftentimes fail miserably – or at least produce a few giggles. In 1949, Popular Mechanics predicted that future computers would at least ‘weigh no more than 1.5 tons.’ … [But] Asimov, writing for the New York Times about the 1964 World’s Fair, was nearly spot-on with a few predictions for what would turn up at a 2014 World’s Fair.”
Does The “Exposure Effect” Work With Bad Art? Evidently Not
“An oil painting of a piece of wood with a sad face sitting on the ground or a pink pony with Disney Princess-like hair. Would people come to like these pieces, considered ‘bad art by some websites, if they became more familiar with them?” According to this study, rather the opposite.
Benjamin Millepied Wonders Why Paris Opera Ballet Is All White, And France Freaks Out
Millepied: “In a city as cosmopolitan as this, I cannot understand why no coloured dancers belong to this company. How can you expect the audience to identify with it?” France: How dare you suggest that this is not the land of égalité?
How Arthur Pita Turned Edward Watson Into A Bug
“A man wakes up one morning to find himself turned into a giant insect. It’s the famous, improbable opening of Kafka’s novella The Metamorphosis, and it popped into the choreographer Arthur Pita’s head one day when he was thinking about working with the Royal Ballet principal dancer Edward Watson.”
Dave Chappelle Walks Out On Audience (And He Maybe Even Had A Point)
“A live appearance by Dave Chappelle can be an unpredictable affair, promising either brilliance or petulance, and audiences who saw him perform Thursday night in Connecticut got a little bit of both, when this onetime Comedy Central star halted his stand-up act in mid-performance and proceeded to run out the clock.”
Stand-Up Comedy At The Large Hadron Collider
“Despite the one about the Higgs boson that goes to church (you can’t have mass without him) and the atom certain it lost an electron (it’s positive), physics isn’t exactly renowned for its jokes. However, the CERN laboratory in Switzerland [hosted] its first standup comedy night on Friday night with six research scientists.”
Minnesota Orchestra Management Makes Play-And-Talk Offer To End Lockout
“Under the proposal, musicians would return Sept. 30 for two months under the tenets of the old contract while negotiations continue to find a new deal. If there is no agreement by then, a 24 month contract would go into effect that would reduce musicians base pay to $87,000 (management says average annual pay will be $102,000).”
Musicians Say MinnOrch Management Offer Isn’t New
“The orchestra’s management … requested that the musicians vote on the proposal] by Sept. 9. Later in the day, the musicians responded with a statement that said: ‘The offer management presented is the same offer the musicians unanimously rejected a few weeks ago.'”