Is Amsterdam’s Stedelijk Museum in danger of losing its important collection of 14 Malevich paintings? “The heirs of the Russian avant-garde artist, who have successfully claimed works from the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Busch-Reisinger Museum of Harvard University, are now in pursuit of a significant part of the largest collection of Malevich’s works in the West. They say that the Stedelijk bought the works from someone who didn’t own them and had no right to sell them.”
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Our Brains Work Differently When We Lie
New research on the brain suggests that our brains behave differently when we’re telling a lie than when we’re telling the truth. Lying makes the brain work harder. “There may be unique areas in the brain involved in deception that can be measured with fMRI. There may be unique areas in the brain involved in truth telling.”
Dancers Strike Puerto Rican Company
Dancers at the Puerto Rican ballet troupe Ballet Concierto are on strike against the company. Monday they accused the company on Monday of trying to recruit replacements from American Ballet Theater and Dance Theater of Harlem.
West End – Where Did The Plays Go?
These days in London’s West End, musicals outnumber straight plays. Where did the plays go? “It’s not that the audience for drama has necessarily declined – just that people now have plenty of other places to see it. In 1954, you went to see a play in the West End or stayed at home. Now, subsidised venues such as the National, the Barbican, the refurbished Royal Court, the Donmar, the Almeida, and Hampstead, as well as the vast number of fringe theatres in pubs and other found locations soak up many of the play-going audience.”
Giving Ground – Arts Philanthropy In Canada
A new portrait of philanthropic giving to the arts in Canada points to some big challenges. “Less than 2% of the population make financial donations to the arts sector. The average donor is described as being over 45 (57% of donors), university-educated (38%), and with a household income exceeding $50,000 (71%). Nonetheless, while the value of donations is increasing – 22% from 1997 to 2000 – the number of donors has actually decreased, a worrying trend for the future.”
Mary Poppins Heads For The Stage
Forty years after Mary Poppins flew on to the silver screen, the character is being revived and revised in a new version for the stage. New music. New attitudes. But will the beloved Julie Andrews character translate to the modern stage?
In Search Of The Digital Actor
Increasingly, movie studios are using digital actors in movies. “The creation of a computer-generated digital person has been the Holy Grail of the digital effects industry. Digital Domain generated attention in this area as far back as 1997, when it populated the decks of the Titanic with digital passengers in its Academy Award-winning epic “Titanic.” More recently, Digital Domain and other effects houses have increasingly used digital characters for certain applications, including stunts where having an actor perform would be dangerous or simply impossible.”
The Most-Watched Movie In History
Gone with the Wind is the most watched movie in UK history. The US civil war epic, based on Margaret Mitchell’s novel, has been seen by 35 million people. The most recent film in the top 10 was 1997’s Titanic, with 18.9m admissions.
Alexander Fails To Conquer Box Office
Oliver Stone’s blockbuster “Alexander” is a bomb at the box office. “The swords and sandals blockbuster, rumoured to have cost more than $150m to make, earned just $13.5 over three days at the US box office.”
Independent Bookstore Takes Aim At Manhattan
With small independent bookstores being squeezed out of business all over America, a new private venture aims to succeed in lower Manhattan…