“Christie’s auction house said Tuesday it had been granted a license that would enable it to become the first international auction house to operate independently in China, which has overtaken the United States as the world’s largest art and auction market.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
The ‘Misery Threshold’, Addiction, And Religious Ecstasy
William James “explored this question … because he wanted to know if some people were more capable or more prone to experience ‘the acute fever’ of religious belief. His answer: it is those who suffer most who are inclined to experience that fever. These are the people who fascinated him: those who toed right up to and sometimes over the line of despair and meaninglessness.”
Bolshoi Ballet Management’s Chief Antagonist Sues Theater
Nikolai Tsiskaridze, the aging principal dancer and Russian media star who has questioned if Sergei Filin (his boss) was really attacked with acid, compared Bolshoi management’s criticism of his behavior to Stalin-era purges, and demanded on TV that he be made Bolshoi general director, has asked the court to order that two recent reprimands be removed from his personnel file.
Yo-Yo Ma, Washington Arts Advocate
The star cellist and musical entrepreneur, describing himself as a “venture culturalist”, gave a Kennedy Center lecture this week on the arts and public policy. “And, though he titled his speech ‘Art for Life’s Sake,’ it was, in fact, a point he made early on about diversity that seemed most potent. He called it ‘the edge effect’ and introduced it with a biology metaphor.”
More And More TV Viewers Can’t Limit Themselves To One Screen At A Time
“Online video is on the rise globally and TV viewers are increasingly multitasking – perhaps searching the web or using social media – during their tube time, a new survey suggests.”
Indian Publishing’s Hottest Genre: Hindu Mythology
“Combining the appeal of fantasy and historical fiction, Indian mythology now reaches from graphic novels to business books. And the genre’s growing popularity is yet another story of how tradition in India has adapted to development, with the attendant gains and losses.”
Fiona Shaw On Playing The Mother of Christ
“There’s a Danish philosopher who has come up with the fascinating notion that actually the moment of despair, of Christ’s death, is the moment which we all need to be freed from – but not through resurrection. Just the fact that someone has dared to say there is this much despair in life may have in itself some healing potential.”
St. Paul Chamber Orchestra Musicians Reject Mayor’s Deal
“Management did not fully explain many of the important details of the proposal to the mayor, and in some cases, they omitted significant specifics all together,” said the chair of the musicians’ negotiating committee.
Barcelona Plans ‘Museum Mountain’ Complex
The city and regional governments have announced a grand project – “when economic conditions permit” – to create a district along the lines of Berlin’s Museum Island on Montjuïc, the city’s mountain park.
Maverick Russian Star Natalia Osipova Joins Britain’s Royal Ballet
“The 26-year-old Moscow ballerina, who made her name as a wunderkind in the Bolshoi Ballet until she quit two years ago, signed a contract last month but held back the news until the end of the London tour of her current company, the Mikhailovsky Ballet”