A new exhibit is centered on the artist’s decision to center his Sephardic Jewish identity-
a choice, because “Modigliani, a half-Italian, half-French Jew growing up in a nation equated with Roman Catholicism (Vatican City wouldn’t become its own state until nine years after Modigliani’s death), was a cultural mixed bag from the get-go.”
Author: ArtsJournal2
What Happens To Languages, And Countries, When English Becomes A ‘Universal’ Language?
Is there any such thing as world literature now? Can anyone who writes a book in English, which thoroughly dominates in the business and political worlds, really think of it as only a national book? (And other questions.)
If You’re Not Sick To Death Of Politics, Hey, The Observer Calls These The Best Political Novels And Plays
You want to read about fighting against despotic leaders who have almost total spy control over their populations, right? Right? Or maybe you just want to read Richard III again. You’ll find all of that here.
Queens Museum Director Speaks Out Because ‘Neutrality Is Fiction’
Lauren Raicovich runs the museum in, the most diverse borough of New York, where 165 different languages are spoken. She “seems to be charting her own community-focused path, with an emphasis on making the museum a safe haven for the borough’s large immigrant population. ‘I take my leadership very seriously — not just in a physical and managerial sense,’ Ms. Raicovich said in a recent interview at her museum office. ‘Care and equity has to be part of what I bring to my position.'”
Virtual … Theatre? Is This Really Going To Happen?
The tech companies certainly want it. Check this out: “A new immersive lab has opened in Brighton which will enable theatre companies to experiment with virtual reality technology.”
After A Huge Pushback From Fans, Marvel Ends Its Relationship With Defense Contractor
Marvel had already canceled its New York Comic Con “activation” event with bombmaker/dronemaker/etc. Northrup Grumman, and now the partnership is over entirely. “Fans immediately called out Marvel for seemingly promoting the military-industrial complex to children, and cited the fact that Tony Stark (aka Iron Man) eventually gave up manufacturing war materials, pointing out that a partnership with a military contractor was antithetical to Stark’s character development.”
Bestselling Books At The Largest Secondhand Bookshop In Scotland?
Railway books, obviously.
Listen Up, Millennials: Before G-Chat, Snapchat, And WhatsApp, There Was The Perfect AIM
Yup, AIM started it all. “You kids don’t understand. You will never understand. You walk around in habitats of text, pop-up cathedrals of social language whose cornerstone is the rectangle in your pocket. The words and the alert sounds swirl around you and you know how to read them and hear them because our culture — that we made — taught you how. We were the first generation to spend two hours typing at our closest friends instead of finishing our homework, parsing and analyzing and worrying over ‘u were so funny in class today’ or ‘nah lol youre pretty cool.'”
Why Do We Allow Boys Who Dance Ballet To Be Relentlessly Bullied?
It’s a real problem: “Teenage boys reported having been teased ‘forever’ and ‘ALLLLLLLLLL the time,’ and more than half said the most significant challenge they confront as boys in ballet is the harassment that serves to police their masculinity — ‘the homophobic attitude of some’ and ‘the assumption that ballet is only for girls and gay men.’ More than 85 percent said more boys would study dance if boys and men weren’t teased and harassed so much for dancing.”
The ‘Murakamists’ Are Not Pleased By This Year’s Nobel Prize (Again)
Disappointed, the gathered Murakamists watched the award announcement, clapped politely, and decided to consume the champagne they had at the ready anyway. “It was slightly more embarrassing for staff at Tokyo’s flagship Kinokuniya bookshop, who had lovingly laid out more than 30 titles of Murakami’s books in a special display. After they let out a loud surprised ‘Ohhh,’ staff quickly dismantled their Murakami corner and replaced it with their handful of copies of Ishiguro’s books while rushing to order more.”