“A contribution by the Chinese artist, film-maker and activist Ai Weiwei to a film called Berlin, I Love You, was cut by the producers on concern it could block the movie from getting distribution in China and create difficulties for them with the Chinese authorities.” – The Art Newspaper
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A Daunting Task: Creating The First New, Full-Length Dance Piece For Pina Bausch’s Company Since She Died
“What’s most important for the company is the legacy, taking care of Pina’s works and then finding the best way to look forward,” says director and choreographer Alan Lucien Øyen, whose Bon Voyage, Bob recently premiered in Bausch’s home theatre and is now in London. – The Stage
As Africa’s Economy Grows, So, Slowly, Does Its Art Market
While demand for contemporary art from Africa is growing in the developed world, “the continent itself, with its reputation as a relatively high-risk business environment with a still nascent domestic collector base, remains unexplored by many international galleries. Is that changing? Yes, but slowly.” – The Art Newspaper
Bibi Ferreira, Brazilian Theatre’s Grande Dame, Dead At 96
“Ms. Ferreira, who sang in English, French and Spanish as well as in Portuguese, began acting when she was a child and continued performing well into her 90s … Her voice was powerful and protean, capable of making material identified with artists like Édith Piaf and Frank Sinatra entirely her own.” And she made history as Brazil’s first Eliza Doolittle and Dolly Levi. – The New York Times
CBS Is Using Artificial Intelligence To Measure Viewers’ Emotional Reactions To Shows
With Canvs Surveys, CBS can now field more open-ended surveys and also expand the set of questions it includes on each one. The tool measures and categorizes consumers’ responses to characters, plot lines and other topics (like related shows), using a standard set of emotional tags such as “love,” “excited,” “bored,” “sad” or “anxious.” – Variety
Portland Loses An Arts Institution – And It Happened Out Of Sight Of The Community
“Closing the college and selling off the campus is the worst possible outcome for just about everybody. It ends a craft community and keeps anyone else from ever joining it. Sometimes, your community isn’t large or committed enough to go on, and then, yes, that’s the end of things. But asking your community to help you figure it all out should be the prior step.” – Oregon Arts Watch
Philosophy Need Not Be Dense And Unreadable, Does It?
Most people do not realise that Aristotle wrote works designed for the general public. If they did, then perhaps more philosophers would automatically assume that they needed to follow his example. – Aeon
Here’s How Brexit Will Impact The Business Of Art
One example: Tornabuoni Art, a high-end dealership with galleries in six locations in Britain, France and Italy, now plans to close its current London exhibition of 20th-century abstracts by Alberto Burri and Lucio Fontana on March 9, three weeks earlier than scheduled. The 40 works in the show have a value of about 70 million euros, or $79 million, which would attract a tax bill of €7 million if shipped back to Italy after Britain drops out of the European Union’s free trade zone, because Italy levies 10 percent on artworks imported from outside the bloc. – The New York Times
Countries File Claims Against UK Museums For Return Of Artifacts
A series of high-profile restitution claims have been received by institutions including the British Museum and the Natural History Museum in recent months. They include a call from the government of Gibraltar for the return of Neanderthal remains, including the first adult skull to be discovered by scientists, and a request from Chile for the repatriation of the remains of a now extinct giant ground sloth. – The Guardian
Forget Living Your Best Life — Here’s An Argument For Living The Good-Enough Life
Western philosophers from Aristotle to Kant to Marx to Ayn Rand (okay, bear with us here) may have differed on what constitutes greatness, but all of them held it as an ideal. Avram Albert argues for a different goal, one espoused by Buddhist thinkers and Romantics (and which we might call the Lake Wobegon ideal): good enough. And even that is difficult. – The New York Times