Venues must require audience members to wear masks and maintain social distance, but if those requirements are being met, then — “despite concerns about persistently high daily infection numbers” — theatres and concert halls may reopen as of Saturday, August 15, along with bowling alleys, skating rinks and some sports events. (Of course, if recent history is any guide, this decision could be reversed Friday afternoon.) – The Guardian
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NY’s High Line Asks For Public Help In Choosing Next Sculpture
The non-profit organisation High Line Art, which commissions public art projects on and around the elevated park in Chelsea, launched a platform of artist proposals this week, and says that comments from the public will be reviewed by its curatorial staff. The deciding vote, however, will ultimately be made by Cecilia Alemani, the director and chief curator of High Line Art, and her staff. – The Art Newspaper
Hollywood Movie Production Restarts (But Not In Hollywood)
Hollywood has been unable to restart production on its own soundstages in California because of surging infections in the state, plodding negotiations with unions over protocols and the time it takes to get test results. So big movie studios, under pressure to get their production assembly lines running again, have focused on overseas shooting. The “Avatar” sequels are filming again in New Zealand. Sony Pictures has “Uncharted,” its adaptation of a popular video game, going in Berlin. – The New York Times
Report: Cultural Institutions Spent Almost $8 Billion On Buildings Last Year
The latest figures for 2019 represent a slowdown in the growth of the number of completed projects seen each year since 2016, as well as the fourth consecutive drop in the number of announced projects, which hit a peak of 135 in 2016. – Artnet
Is Singing Together During COVID Safe?
“Singing in a room for an extended period of time, in close contact with lots of people and no ventilation — that’s a recipe for disaster,” says Shelly Miller, a professor at the University of Colorado Boulder. Along with Jelena Srebric at the University of Maryland, Miller is leading a six-month research project looking at singers’ and other musicians’ transmission of aerosol particles. – NPR
Life In The Fast Lane? It Comes With A Cost
“There’s a cost to living; there’s a cost to doing everything. That cost depends on the speed at which we’re living, to some degree. If we are living our lives at a very fast rate, we tend to wear out sooner. There is a strong relationship between metabolic rate—the rate at which we’re taking in oxygen and burning up food—and lifespan. Under good conditions, we focus most of our resources on sexual maturation. I’m speaking not so much about humans as animals in general. But this goes beyond the animal kingdom.” – Nautilus
Report: Racism At Canadian Museum Of Human Rights
“I served as an external adviser and peer reviewer for the museum over several years. The current crisis may be shocking, but it’s a predictable consequence of the museum’s history of separating strategic management practices from human rights principles.” – The Conversation
AMC Says It Will Open Its Movie Theatres Next Week
Starting August 20th, AMC plans to have more than 100 theaters open, and it says it will continue opening locations “such that about two-thirds of our theatres across the country should be open no later than September 3.” – The Verge
How A Turkish Historical Drama Became ‘The Muslim ‘Game Of Thrones”
Ertuğrul, a five-season dizi (that’s Turkish for telenovela-crossed-with-historical-epic) about the father of the founder of the Ottoman Empire, “is now so popular that it has been dubbed into six languages and broadcast in 72 countries. On YouTube alone, Ertuğrul has surpassed 1.5bn views.” – The Guardian
Berliners Worry About The Health Of The City’s Visual Arts
More than 5,000 visual artists from around the world are based here, according to statistics compiled by city authorities. Despite high-profile closures, there are still more than 300 galleries, and before Covid-19 restrictions, there were public art talks nearly every night. The postponed Berlin Biennial is going forward on Sept. 5, and Gallery Weekend, an event in which about 50 local galleries court international collectors, has moved to mid-September from its usual springtime slot. Many art world insiders blame Berlin’s policymakers, however, for failing to develop a solid institutional infrastructure for contemporary art, including securing real estate for its display. – The New York Times