In many ways, Seattle is the perfect city for an architect looking to make his mark. Adventurous, forward-thinking, loaded with money, and possessed of a deep appreciation for the arts, the city has become known for its willingness to take chances with its public spaces and buildings. Of course, that kind of freedom can create the opportunity for spectacular failure as easily as great success, and many architects have fallen into the trap. But for Rem Koolhaas, Seattle may just be the city that revived his career.
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So It’s Not Really A ‘Film’, Is It?
“In a first of its kind move, independent movie distributor Lions Gate Films, based in Vancouver, will make its first release of a movie… on new digital systems in AMC theatres that offer a low-cost way to reach mass audiences. The move tests a nascent process for distributing films via digital systems linking theatres on high-speed networks, and it could offer low-budget films a more effective way to compete with Hollywood.”
Terra Museum Prepares For Shutdown
“At 5 p.m. on Oct. 31, the Terra Museum of American Art, which has existed for almost a quarter century, will close its doors and Chicago will lose one of its cultural institutions… 50 paintings from the Terra collection and all 350 of its works on paper will go on long-term loan to the Art Institute of Chicago, where they will be shown in a new installation beginning next spring. The remaining 300 pieces will be placed in storage, shown in the Terra’s sister museum in Giverny, France or be lent for exhibitions at other institutions.”
Barenboim, First Person
Daniel Barenboim has been the subject of many rumors over the past year, with speculation rampant about his recent back injury, his supposed tendency to overcommit himself, and his decision to leave the music directorship of the Chicago Symphony in 2006. Barenboim insists that there is no more than meets the eye in any of these issues. Still, he admits frustration with the direction the CSO is taking. “I disagree with the way [the CSO brain trust], and America, in general, look at the role of music director. The symphony orchestra culture in America has changed over the last 10 years. [Subscriptions] are down because music has lost a large part of its place in American society. That’s an illness, but we are dealing with the symptoms in the wrong way.”
What, No Tote Bags? No Mugs?
Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theater is in the final stages of its fundraising push to finance its huge new home on the banks of the Mississippi River, and that means that it’s time to involve the general public. Of course, the general public doesn’t like to shell out its hard-earned cash without getting a trinket in return, so the Guthrie is offering a range of options for lower-end givers. $100 will get you a refrigerator magnet, $1000 equals a set of new Guthrie notecards, and for $5000, your name gets nailed to a seat in the new $125 million theater.
Music Looking For A Partner
Composers are almost always happiest when they know for whom they are writing, and when they can tailor their latest work to a specific musician’s talents, especially in the realm of vocal music, where the subtle discrepancies between voices of can make a world of difference in performance. In an effort to promote such collaborations, a new workshop has been launched by the composer John Harbison and the soprano Dawn Upshaw, bringing together young singers and composers who have never met, but who will be expected to make music together by the end of the session.
Wait, It’s Not Harassment! I’m A Writer!
Comedy is a dirty business, and for comedy writers working on a sitcom, ordinary workplace rules simply don’t apply. Or do they? A lawsuit filed by a former assistant on the TV show Friends “contends that while doing her job, which was to record anything any of the writers said, [the assistant] was subjected to her bosses’ dirty, personal and just plain weird banter, so much so that it constituted sexual harassment.” The defense being mounted is a novel one, and it could have far-reaching ramifications for the joke-writing business: the studio insists that comedy writers can’t possibly do their jobs without such inappropriate chatter.
Mrs. Schwarzenegger Takes On California Museum
California’s State History Museum is nearly broke, and could close in the next few months if a sudden influx of cash is not found. The state’s first lady, former journalist Maria Shriver, is proposing to convert the institution into a museum celebrating the contribution of women to California’s history, but a backlash began the moment Shriver stepped into the fray, with detractors accusing her of strong-arming the museum board. Shriver insists that the board approached her, and that she is “happy to help.”
The Truly Independent Scholar
To make a living as a scholar, you generally need to be associated with a college or university, and earn your keep by teaching. But there are a few professional scholars who prefer to be their own bosses, and work outside the constraints of academia. “Working from home offers advantages such as the freedom from papers to grade or departmental meetings to attend. The drawbacks tend to be financial.” Indie scholars also can have a hard time getting access to libraries, and grants to pursue their research can be hard to come by as well.
Where Are The City Folk?
The shortlist for this year’s Giller Prize is once again filled with historical novels, and almost obsessed with a rural sensibility that has dominated Canadian literature over the past few years. Philip Marchand doesn’t see anything wrong with that perspective, but “I still wondered if, in our literary culture, a work of fiction set in present-day Toronto was somehow regarded as a bit trivial. A good writer who carefully observed contemporary life always ended up sounding satirical, and to some people satire was Not Serious. Better to have these soulful looks at the past, at a way of life that was vanishing. That was real literature.”