London’s National Gallery is considering expanding its collecting activities into the 20th Century. “At present its remit runs until 1900, following a 1996 agreement with Tate. Under the terms of the deal, the NG transferred 14 post-1900 pictures to Tate on long-term loan, with Tate lending 51 pre-1900 European works to Trafalgar Square.”
Blog
Google Gets Back To Digitizing
After a pause to assess opposition, Google has resumed its book digitizing project. “But in an apparent attempt to reassure critics, the search giant said on its blog that it would focus on books that were out of print or in the public domain. Google is pumping $200m (£110m) into creating a digital archive of millions of books from four top US libraries – the libraries of Stanford, Michigan and Harvard universities, and of the New York Public Library – by 2015.”
No Beethoven In Schools? How Absurd
“What does social reform and democracy mean, if great art is withheld from the populace? The ancien regime that confined the artistic canon to a prosperous few has no place in our culture. Nothing could be more patronising than to decide for our young people that some art is ‘too highbrow’ for them, perhaps because of their ethnic background or an unpromising urban environment. The idea that the western artistic canon is not ‘relevant’ in today’s multicultural classroom need only be reversed to be exposed as ridiculous. Imagine decreeing that a class of white teenagers cannot relate to West African drumming.”
“The Producers” Doesn’t Pay Off In Australia
“The Producers” has shut early in Australia, running only six months. “The show has made a modest profit but only because it ran for eight months in Melbourne last year. It’s a far cry from Disney’s family extravaganza, The Lion King, which packed out the Capitol Theatre for almost two years and is playing to full houses in Melbourne.”
Scotland’s National Theatre Opens For Business
“Scotland, for better or worse, has no great weighty theatre tradition behind it. There is no Shakespeare or Marlowe, no George Bernard Shaw or Wilde. Scottish theatre has always been demotic and vital, led by great performances, great stories or great playwrights. This is a chance to start building a new generation of theatre-goers as well as reinvigorating the existing ones; to create theatre on a national and international scale that is contemporary, confident and forward-looking; to bring together brilliant artists, composers, choreographers and playwrights; and to exceed our expectation of what and where theatre can be.”
World Cup Disses Bavarian Dance
“Members of Bavaria’s folk dancing association are incensed that they have been allocated just 45 seconds to perform during next year’s World Cup opening ceremony on June 9 in Munich. Millions of TV viewers from across the globe are expected to watch the opening celebrations before the first match of the tournament between Germany and a team to be drawn next month. The folk dancers are also furious after organisers banned women from performing – leaving the men, who wear Lederhosen and Bavarian hats decorated with the beard of a mountain goat, to slap their thighs alone.”
So Audiences Are Older… And Your Point?
“Though I have seen some strikingly young audiences for events in London and elsewhere while working with a touring company, you do quickly realise that the backbone of many audiences around the country is on the senior side of 60. There are certain venues where, if the comedy in a show is too raucous, you worry whether all of the audience is going to survive to the end of the show. As hearing aids produce their weird dog-whistle whine, and large sections mutter continuously to themselves, while other sections nod blissfully off, you can feel a little of the exasperation that impels the Arts Council. Yet is this anything new? The prejudice against the aged is always quick to surface, however dumb.”
Newspaper As Art Facilitator
The Guardian newspaper launches an international project to bring artists together. “Imagine if you put fourteen artists from seven different countries in a room together. What would they talk about? What would they learn? What would they reveal? Simply put, that’s what imagine art after is all about. We can’t put those artists together in one room – they’re in locations as far-flung as Tehran and Tirana, London and Lagos – but, using the web, we can showcase their work, put them in touch with each other and get them to talk.”
Hollywood’s Alternate Reality
“Since Hollywood is an industry dedicated to perpetrating illusion, its leaders often assume they have license to take liberties with the factual elements that support the movies they make. This practice is euphemistically described by marketing executives as ‘pushing the reality envelope.’ The way in which Hollywood crosses the boundary between the make-believe and the real world takes myriad forms.”
Van Gogh, The Remakes
In a tribute to murdered Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, friends are remaking some of his films in American versions. “Each film will be shot on digital video in the rapid, three-camera style used by the late director. Filming will last only two weeks per title to keep the budget low and the intensity high. Unlike the last few of van Gogh’s films, none of the remakes focus on religious or political themes, sticking instead to the sexy, provocative themes and edgy characters that made van Gogh both a pariah and favorite at home.”