“There are officially 77 countries taking part in this year’s Venice Biennale, shipping in crates of their most eye-catching art. But unbeknownst to most of the thronging crowds, there is a 78th nation involved (a kingdom, to be precise), one that does not show up on any of the lists… It bears the unwieldy name of the Kingdoms of Elgaland-Vargaland, and they exist primarily in the minds of two dour, funny middle-aged artists from Stockholm.”
Author: sbergman
Ordering Up A Rockwell & Coke
Back in the 1920s, the Coca Cola Company commissioned six paintings from Norman Rockwell that became part of the soft drink maker’s legendary positioning of itself at the heart of traditional Americana. But after the ads ran, Coke lost track of three of the original paintings. Now, it’s hoping to find them and buy them back.
Nothing Wrong With A Bit Of Wishful Thinking
Reviews of the new comedy, Knocked Up, have been largely positive, and yet, a significant number of reviewers and commentators have taken issue with yet one more movie in which a drop-dead gorgeous woman falls for a guy best described as homely. Peter Howell fails to understand why this plot device irritates so many: “If you’ve spent any time at all on this Earth, you know that all kinds of couplings are possible. You also know that women are generally far more forgiving of a man’s failings than men are of women’s foibles, especially in the looks department.”
Extreme Gore No Longer Scoring With Moviegoers
“Call it a market correction. Call it a slump. Call it audience fatigue with a subpar rash of crazed killers, wanton vampires and jiggling coeds, but horror, one of Hollywood’s enduring staples, is tanking.”
Opera For All (And They Mean It)
Boston has a new opera company, with a different sort of mission. “The impulses that underlie the organization are squarely democratic: They are committed to making opera accessible to all, and not just artistically… Productions will be either free or inexpensive,” and shows will be scaled down to a chamber-style performance that fits in a more casual space, featuring an accompanying orchestra that may be no larger than a string quartet.
What Really Happened In Atlanta?
The managing editor at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has been working overtime to dispel the perception that the paper was planning to gut its cultural coverage and eliminate the position of classical music critic. (In fact, the critic’s title was merely tweaked.) Alex Ross, for one, is mostly convinced of the paper’s sincerity. “The AJC is indeed seriously committed to arts coverage, whether or not you agree with its stance toward criticism.”
Navel-Gazing With A Wary Eye Towards The Future
Theatre professionals from across the country are gathering this weekend at Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theater to ponder the future of their craft, and how best to adjust to a rapidly changing world of entertainment choices. “Will theater have to extend its definition to include 3-D creations? Online-only productions? Virtual communities? What is the role of theater in an America where the public is increasingly infatuated with celebrity?”
Remind Me Why We Came Here?
BookExpo Canada, the huge publishing industry exhibition held at Toronto’s Harbourfront, is basically a big schmoozefest for booksellers, publishing houses, and authors. And that kind of close annual contact can only be a good thing for the industry, right? Um… right?
Old-Timers Take Griffin Poetry Prizes
“Veteran poets triumphed Wednesday night at the 7th annual Griffin Poetry Prize ceremony in Toronto’s Distillery District. B.C.’s Don McKay, 65, nominated for the Griffin Canadian Award on two previous occasions, hit the mark with his third nomination, taking the $50,000 honour from a field of three… McKay’s success was matched by U.S. poet Charles Wright, 71, whose most recent volume, Scar Tissue, bested three other contestants to take the Griffin for best International Poetry, also worth $50,000.”
Testing The Limits Of Internet Ranting
For the last seven years, crime novelist Patricia Cornwell has been stalked, online and off, by a man who claims that she stole his ideas, hates Jews, follows Hitler, and is conspiring to have him killed. Cornwell has moved three times in order to escape his presence, and now, she is suing him for libel in a case that could have wider implications for online discourse.