Lost in the various brouhahas over whether Damien Hirst is truly a great artist and whether the art market is out of control is the inescapable fact that, with his self-engineered auction this week, Hirst may have changed the market forever.
Author: sbergman
Xanadu To Close This Fall
“Xanadu, the Tony-nominated musical based on the infamous flop film of the same name, will play its final performance at Broadway’s Helen Hayes Theatre Oct. 12. When it closes the musical will have played a total of 49 previews and 528 regular performances.”
Cirque du Soleil Pulls Out Of 2010 Olympics
“Cirque du Soleil will not be part of the Vancouver 2010 opening or closing ceremonies despite high expectations that Canada’s premier entertainment group would appear. A source close to the company blames tight control exerted over the creative process by VANOC and the IOC.”
Proposed Book Sale Sparks Anger In Quebec
“The Literary and Historical Society of Quebec – the oldest learned society in Canada – says it was merely trying to do some ‘weeding’ when it decided to put 1,500 books from its library collection up for auction.” But public outrage over the sale has forced a postponement, and may yet cancel the sale altogether.
CBC Taps Sony Exec As New Radio Chief
“The CBC is expected to announce this morning that Denise Donlon, former president of Sony Music Canada, will become executive director of CBC Radio. Donlon is widely considered among the most influential woman in Canadian music, and her appointment may signal the direction in which CBC executive vice-president Richard Stursberg wants CBC radio programming to go.”
COC Gets $2m For Free Concerts
The Canadian Opera Company has announced a $2 million anonymous gift endowing its series of free daytime concerts. “The programming covers a wide range of musical tastes and styles, from opera and classical, to jazz, world music, hip hop, dance and even some specialized lectures related to the main opera and ballet programming.”
How To Keep The $$ Flowing In Tough Political Times
One of Canada’s leading philanthropists says that arts advocates can’t just sit around bad-mouthing the prime minister whenever conservatives less friendly to cultural funding are in charge. “The goal, he says, must be to influence the government. Get on the radar screen. Get the media to publicize your issue. Build a strong argument. Demand that every party articulate a cultural policy.”
Smithsonian’s New Chief Looks To The Future
The Smithsonian’s new secretary wants the Institution to be involved in ‘the great issues of the day.’ “The stakes are high for a man who has had 39 successful years at educational institutions. And the stakes are perhaps higher for the Smithsonian, which has recently suffered from administrative mismanagement, congressional outrage and low staff morale.”
Jerwood Winners Announced
“Artist Warren Baldwin has won the Jerwood Drawing Prize for his pencil and charcoal on paper drawing, Study for Portrait… This year saw more than 2,500 entries submitted to the UK’s largest annual open drawing competition.”
Hirst Auction Exceeds All Expectations
Damien Hirst’s 2-day art auction has concluded, bringing “a total of $200.7 million, more than the auction house’s high estimate of $177.6 million.” The sum obliterates the previous record for an auction of works by a single artist.