Streetscapes aren’t looking too great right now in many cities. And “museums and galleries around the world have locked their doors as people wait out the coronavirus pandemic in isolation. But works of street art, cropping up on bare walls and boarded-up storefronts across urban landscapes, are offering images of beauty and hope to those venturing out for exercise.” – The New York Times
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An Arts Donor On Life, And Giving, During The Shutdown
In Oregon, arts organizations know Ronni Lacroute, and she knows what they need – usually. Right now, says the philanthropist, things are just a bit different: “The way I donate hasn’t really changed. It’s more flexible. It’s like, ‘Okay, here’s an annual donation. Now, if this, then spend it on this. If that, then spend it on that.’ And generally, it’s people first. … It’s more about people than about venues.” – Oregon ArtsWatch
Parlez-Vous Screen?
The web has its own culture, it’s own language, its own ethos. Putting facsimile arts experiences online won’t cut it. And yet, we need to develop a hybrid model that includes the online experience. – Douglas McLennan
@PublishersWeakly Skewers The Publishing World With Uncomfortable Critique
“As it currently stands, the publishing industry largely serves the interests of the wealthiest higher-ups, and that is the entire reason for any financial strain on publishers without the capital of a corporation. The larger publishers could easily take the risks that smaller publishers do. The only reason for smaller presses to be working with less is because that’s simply how the system has been engineered to function.” – Electric Lit
Survey Says One Third Of Museums Could Close. How Do You Close Them?
Closing a museum is not just a matter of shutting the doors and turning off the lights. Institutions with significant collections have ethical and sometimes legal obligations to make sure that their objects are transferred elsewhere. The process can be both costly and time-consuming, experts say. – The New York Times
The New Frugality?
04.30.20
For decades American culture has promoted the ethos of disposable things. We are encouraged to be acquisitive – getting things for the sake of getting them. Suddenly under lockdown, is a new zeitgeist taking hold? Reuse. Make last. Seek permanence. – Vox
We Still Haven’t Made The Case That Artists Are Essential Workers
Why is it in the UK we are afraid of expressing big thinking, challenging the government to a discussion about the indispensability of the arts and making the case that its practitioners are absolutely Essential Workers for our spiritual and intellectual wellbeing? – Arts Professional
How Do You Reopen Hollywood? Maybe Move It To Iceland?
Iceland has tested its population widely for virus, and has had few cases so it could be safe for shooting. The country, with its sparsely populated but spacious North Atlantic geography, advanced filming infrastructure, production incentives and experienced crews, had long been an attractive shooting location. – Los Angeles Times
Why Do We Like Symmetry?
Leonard Susskind argues that we don’t. He says that “dating back to the Ancient Greeks, what’s often been perceived as elegant simplicity was almost always a fiction or an approximation covering for a much messier reality.” – Aeon
Even In This Crisis, Museums Selling Their Art Is A Dangerously Slippery Slope
Yes, the COVID lockdown has deprived most museums of nearly all their income, which is why the Association of Art Museum Directors has given qualified approval for members to “use the proceeds from deaccessioned works of art … to support the direct care” of a museum’s collections as a whole. Sebastian Smee points out the problems (and there are several) that this might create. – The Washington Post