Blog

An Attempt At An NPR For Conservatives?

The nightly two-hour show, which is carried on nearly 200 radio stations nationwide and boasts an estimated audience of 1.3 million, might not identify as ideological or political, at least not overtly. But Lee Habeeb has clearly positioned it as a right-of-center alternative to NPR, whose programs such as Morning Edition and All Things Considered also emphasize skillful story-telling, but which many conservatives perceive, rightly or not, as inhospitable to anything that isn’t progressive or politically correct. – The Daily Beast

A Sociologist Explores Explanations For Why Art By Men Gets Higher Prices Than Art By Women

“Who and what defines art and quality, which institutions matter and how they are accessed, who knows whom, whether advantage is accumulated from a prejudiced past, and where conscious and subconscious biases of culture interrupt economic valuation—these are the questions that sociologists ask to explain greatness. It is not a denial of quality, talent, innovation, or genius, but a way to contextualize them.” – Artsy

A Stolen (And Damaged) deKooning Will Be Shown Before Heading To The Getty For Repair

The challenge is bringing the 1955 canvas — an example from de Kooning’s celebrated but also contested “Woman” series, known for their grotesque, even savage renderings of the female nude — back to near-original condition. Ulrich Birkmaier, the Getty Museum’s senior paintings conservator, and Tom Learner, the Getty Conservation Institute’s head of science, have teamed up for the project. They expect the process to take at least a year. – The New York Times

Is Disappearing Or De-Platforming People Or Work Defensible In Free Speech Terms?

No-platforming is when a person is prevented from contributing to a public debate, either through policy or protest, on the grounds that their beliefs are dangerous or unacceptable. Open-speech advocates highlight what we might call first-order evidence: evidence for and against the arguments that the speakers make. But they overlook higher-order evidence. – Aeon

Why Have A Bunch Of Realistic-Looking Statues Turned Up In An Empty West Philly Lot?

“There is no indication at the site what the figures are or where they might go. There is no indication that a museum is in the offing. Just painted bronze figures in suits and beachwear standing on dirt in West Philly. … As unlikely as it may sound, it appears that the 4700 block of Market Street has been targeted by a somewhat reclusive private foundation — the Daniel Veloric Foundation — as the site for a museum sometime in the future.” – The Philadelphia Inquirer

Microtonality, Anyone?

Philipp Gerschlauer, David Fiuczunski: MikroJazz! (Rare Noise Records)
This exploratory venture is subtitled, “Neue Expressionistiche Music,” and the music is, indeed, expressionistic. Ears accustomed to conventional tuning may initially find the microtonal approach difficult to absorb. However, after a hearing or two the microtonality begins to move beyond exoticism, and a listener accepts that the Western equal-tempered scale does not have to be accepted as gospel. – Doug Ramsey

Has Literary Criticism Become Too “Nice.” Too Apolitical?

“Criticism” in The New York Times Book Review tends to look “positive,” by academic standards, not because it always says the book is good but because it offers market advice as to whether you should buy it, whether you will like it, without asking much about the market itself or about what it would mean about you or about the world if you did like it. – Chronicle of Higher Education

Here’s The First Winner Of A New Prize For Offstage Work In The Arts

“After spending years behind the scenes as an artistic and executive director of various arts organizations, Kristy Edmunds will take center stage on March 25 in Chicago to receive the inaugural Berresford Prize from United States Artists. The prize, which will be given annually to a cultural practitioner for their work on behalf of artists, comes with an unrestricted award of $25,000.” – The New York Times

How Did Street Art Get Corporatized?

As more corporations and real estate developers across the country turn to murals to hawk their products, controversy follows. In New York City, for instance, Target had to apologize for a mural it installed inside a new store in the East Village. While the mural was designed as an homage to the neighborhood’s history as a home to punk rockers and struggling immigrants alike, it drew criticism for making light of the gentrification that had transformed the neighborhood. – In These Times