The court lets stand a charge levied on sale of music player devices such as iPods.”In December 2003, the Copyright Board approved the group’s request to collect the new levy, which was built into the Canadian prices of digital audio recorders and MP3 players. The new charge ranged from an extra $2 tacked onto the price of a music player using up to one gigabyte of non-removable memory up to an extra $25 on the price of a player using more than 10 GB of memory.
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Linda Farris, 61
Longtime star Seattle gallery owner Linda Farris died after a long fight against cancer. “Linda was one of the most significant shaping forces for contemporary art in the history of Seattle. She nurtured artists and nurtured public appreciation for their work. Her gallery was not just an exhibition space but also a site of a dynamic dialogue about art that brought people together. The Contemporary Art Project characterized the imagination and flair she brought to everything she did and is one of her great legacies.”
Calatrava, Master Drawer
Architect Santiago Calatrava talking about his new Chicago tower? Fuhgeddaboudit! But put a pen in his hand and have him draw? It’s magic. “While this drawing business has elements of showbiz — what a Disney animator he would have been! — it’s also Calatrava’s way of thinking: dreaming onto the sketchpad, trolling for inspiration, one seemingly unrelated image giving way to another and another until something clicks and a path opens up. Birds lead to human figures, which lead to eyes, which lead to something like a church monstrance.”
Study: Dali = Big Bucks For Philly
“The Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Salvador Dalí exhibit generated $55 million in economic activity in the Philadelphia region, created 830 equivalent full-time jobs, and added more than $4.46 million in increased tax revenue, according to a report.”
Korean Composer At The Top
Ivan Hewett meets Unsuk Chin, who last year won the Grawemeyer Award, the musical world’s richest prize for composers. Never before had a Korean composer made it so big in the West, and back home it was headline news. I suggest that after her long exile in Berlin, where she went in 1986 to study on a German government scholarship, she could now return to her roots and enjoy her celebrity status. The idea horrifies her.”
Italian Prime Minister Sues Author Over Crime Book
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has sued the author of a book about crime in Italy. “Penguin, which published the book in English, has promoted it as an exploration of the dark underside of Italy today. The book looks at Mafia, organised crime and corruption in Italy, and it also looks at Silvio Berlusconi … the principal actor of the Italian political stage since the early 1990s,”
Pop Star Signs Cell Phone Deal
Pop singer Robbie Williams has “signed an exclusive deal with the global telecom giant T-Mobile that will allow customers to download songs, exclusive live tracks and concert footage to their mobile phones. The 18-month deal is the biggest tie-up yet between a big artist and a phone company and will be watched with interest by others convinced that mobile music delivery will become an important factor in boosting flagging record sales over the next few years.”
Stanley Kunitz At 100
He becomes a centennarian this week. “In his time, Kunitz seems to have known or had contact with practically everyone of note in the poetry world. He has also won virtually every prize and honor, and propelled or redirected the careers of dozens of poets. He won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, and served as consultant in poetry to the Library of Congress from 1974 to 1976 and again from 2000 to 2001, at age 95, after the position was renamed poet laureate.”
Theatre Calgary’s New Top Guy
Theatre Calgary has a new director. He’s “Dennis Garnhum, 37, a London, Ont., native who has been living in New York for the past three years, is a chameleon director whose résumé includes musical theatre, opera, American and British political drama, murder mysteries and a number of new Canadian plays.”
Ex-Newfoundland Gallery Director Speaks Out
Why did the director/founder of Newfoundland’s provincial art gallery suddenly resign? “Gordon Laurin said he had objected to a proposed restructuring of gallery staff and management, including cutting staff by 40 per cent, to eight employees. This move would eliminate several key positions, leaving only two curators, two administrative assistants, and those who look after the collections. It would also see some staff, such as technical or outreach workers, reporting to different provincial departments including financing and marketing, diluting the gallery’s in-house ability to handle such processes as exhibit loans, or artist-in-residence programs, he said.”