Tourists have always taken photographs. Like graffiti, it’s a very human way of saying “I was here”. But in the pre-digital age, because of the expense of film as well as high shooting ratios, you were lucky if you ended up with one usable picture. Now “influencers” can take as many photographs as they need, photoshopping and filtering until they are able to post the perfect advertisement (for that indeed is what these images are). The centering of the self to such an extent is new too, and at the expense of knowledge, exploration and adventure.
Blog
The Protest Song Is Back! Pop Music Is More Political Than At Any Time Since The ’60s
And you can guess why. Dorian Lynskey, author of 33 Revolutions Per Minute: A History of Protest Songs, talks with Spencer Kornhaber about the current revival of political pop and its pitfalls.
Pop Culture Has Been Painting Harassment And Predatory Behavior As Romantic For A Long Time
As one male character in Gossip Girl sais in a wedding toast, “In the face of true love you don’t just give up, even if the object of your affection is begging you to.” Julie Beck lays out some of the owrrying examples, from “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” to “Blurred Lines” and from Say Anything to Twilight to Grey’s Anatomy.
‘The Boy Factor’ – Do Young Men Get An Unfair Advantage In Dance Competitions?
It sure seems that way, various teachers and judges tell Sarah Nagle. Why? Basically, the law of supply and demand.
Windfall Or White Elephant? Great American Songbook Foundation Gets A Huge Donation It May Not Be Able To Afford
“The Great American Songbook Foundation is around 10 years old and has an annual budget of less than $1 million, so accepting the donation of the $30 million Asherwood Estate is … well, complicated.” The gift isn’t cash: it’s an actual estate with mansion, pool and golf course – and there are restrictive covenants attached to the property that will complicate a sale.
Even With Free Admission, Attendance At Baltimore’s Art Museums Is Falling
“Eleven years ago, when Baltimore’s two largest art museums” – the Walters Art Museum and the Baltimore Museum of Art – “joined a nationwide trend by announcing that they would drop admission fees, the news was applauded in newspapers from New York to Detroit to Jackson, Miss. … [But] after initial surges in attendance, museums in Baltimore and nationwide that went free soon resumed losing visitors at alarming rates. A decade later, museum officials are still scrambling to devise ways to reverse the slide.”
There’s A Painted-Over Sol LeWitt In A Houston Dentist’s House
“The site-specific Wall Drawing #679 – a grid of blue squares segmented by red and yellow lines – had been commissioned by the late William F. Stern, a local architect and the home’s previous owner. It was executed on the roughly 30-by-10-foot wall in the early 1990s, and covered up years later when the house was sold.” Now the owner is uncovering it – problem is, she doesn’t legally own it. Artsy‘s Isaac Kaplan explains.
Jazz Vocalist Marlene VerPlanck, 84
“[She] a polished jazz vocalist who began her recording career in 1955, had a strong second career in the 1960s and ’70s as a prolific jingle singer, sang backup on Frank Sinatra’s Trilogy album, recorded solo albums throughout the ’80s and ’90s, and had a third career recently as she toured and performed to critical acclaim in the States and abroad.”
‘The Awl’ Is Shutting Down
The webzine founded by Choire Sicha, Alex Balk, and David Cho in 2009 was eclectic and quirky: “On any given day, The Awl might play host to a story about colloidal silver, a guide to killing possums before they kill your chickens, or a novella-length examination of the TV show Adventure Time; there might be Q&As with salesmen of high-end vacuum cleaners, or a dive into McDonald’s marketing of its McRib sandwich.” As it and its sister site The Hairpin close due to insufficient ad revenue, former contributor Bijan Stephen pays tribute.
Anshel Brusilow, Former Conductor Of Dallas Symphony, Dead At 89
“[He] served as music director and executive director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra in the early 1970s, and subsequently headed orchestra programs at the University of North Texas and Southern Methodist University.” Earlier in his career, he was concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy and assistant concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra under George Szell.