“A design over two years in the making, [Hiroshi Sugimoto’s makeover] transforms the museum’s entrance and lobby area, turning the information desk into a coffee bar, and providing a more inviting seating area next to it. Sugimoto’s armchairs reference both the iconically circular shape of the building and coils of DNA, and the tables are made from the roots of a 700-year-old Japanese nutmeg tree he found 15 years ago. … Benches stand on legs of the same kid of optical glass used in camera lenses.”
Blog
Deal Struck To Sell Westminster Choir College To Chinese Steel Co. For $40 Million
Just a day after Princeton Theological Seminary announced that it has filed a lawsuit to stop the sale of Westminster Choir College, Rider University has finally revealed the potential purchaser of the school, a Chinese firm based in Beijing that runs private K-12 schools. The company, Beijing Kaiwen Education Technology Co., Ltd., … was called ‘Jiangsu Zhongtai Bridge Steel Structure Co’ until December of 2017. The company has only been operating schools since 2016.”
Supreme Court Rules Terrorism Victims May Not Seize Iranian Antiquities As Compensation
“The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that Americans injured in a 1997 suicide bombing in Jerusalem cannot seize ancient Persian artifacts from a Chicago museum to satisfy a $71.5 million court judgment against Iran, which they had accused of complicity in the attack.”
Makers Of ‘The Shape Of Water’ Sued For Plagiarism By Playwright’s Estate
“David Zindel, son of American playwright Paul Zindel, filed the complaint Wednesday alleging that [Guillermo] Del Toro’s critically acclaimed film, which has more Oscar nominations than any other this year, has ‘exploited’ the play Let Me Hear You Whisper and should have credited and licensed his father’s work.”
With A New Orchestra In San Diego, Conductor Rafael Payaré Is Leaving His Old One In Belfast
Little more than a week after the San Diego Symphony announced that it had hired the 37-year-old Venezuelan as its music director, the Ulster Orchestra has announced that Payaré will step down as music director at the end of next season.
What’s The Next Big European TV Export? Flemish Crime Dramedies
Says Walter Iuzzolino, who curates a selection of European television for broadcast in the UK and streaming in the US, “You often pretty much know what you’re going to get from a Scandinavian, or French, or Italian show. But there is something about the Belgians that means a show is never entirely straight. So The Out-laws is like a family comedy stroke thriller. You’re watching something like Desperate Housewives with a gun, and then gradually it becomes darker and darker. Professor T has almost Ally McBeal-like musical and dream sequences alongside straight police procedural.”
Scotland’s Arts Funder Gets Caught Lying About Controversial Cuts
“Creative Scotland has admitted a cover-up over how controversial funding cuts were made – as its chief executive admitted she was ‘profoundly sorry’ over how they were handled. The quango has also pledged a ‘root and branch’ review of the way funding decisions were made and a ‘reset’ of its future priorities in the wake of widespread criticism across the cultural sector.”
Top Posts From AJBlogs 02.22.18
My Storify from the Obama Portraits Event: Eclectic Crowd, Controversial Art
In case you still have an appetite for more about the Obama portraits unveiling and installation, here’s my Storify of live tweets from the scene … read more
AJBlog: CultureGrrl Published 2018-02-22
Julian Lage at the Bootleg Theater
Last night’s show by the young Santa Rosa native was one of the greatest jazz gigs I’ve ever seen. Even knowing a few of his records and having seen him play … read more
AJBlog: CultureCrash Published 2018-02-21
Frieze To Launch a New Art Fair In Los Angeles
“How much appetite there will be for another art fair in Los Angeles, however, remains to be seen. L.A. is home to a pair of established fairs: the L.A. Art Show, which is generally held downtown, and the glitzier Art Los Angeles Contemporary, staged at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica.
But the city is not generally regarded by collectors as an art market destination.”
Saudi Arabia Says It Will Invest $64 Billion In Entertainment
“The plans include Saudi’s first opera house after concerts had been banned for the past two decades. This follows the recent lifting of a 35-year ban on public movie theaters, opening up a what is expected to be a lucrative market. It all falls under the progressive Crown Prince’s Vision 2030 program. These sorts of reforms are revolutionary in what has been an ultra-conservative Kingdom. Women were recently granted the right to drive and attend football matches.”