“The BMA is hardly the only museum with stark pay-equity problems in its lower ranks. But its attention to the issue has set it apart from countless other institutions that have largely ignored the issue. For the sake of the museum’s service workers — and service workers everywhere — here’s hoping they figure it out.” – Los Angeles Times
Blog
Tower Records Returns Online
The new online version of Tower Records was originally scheduled for introduction at the 2020 South by Southwest, but pulled back when that event was curtailed by the pandemic. It was also envisioned as a series of pop-up shops, an idea also delayed by the coronavirus. – Deadline
Painter Wayne Thiebaud @ 100
Thiebaud is still painting, still driving, still in touch with students and disciples gathered over a career that included decades of teaching. He works most days and describes himself as “still a struggling painter.” – Washington Post
Athens Workers Find A Bust Of A Greek God While Doing Sewer Work
The Greek Culture Ministry was calm about it. “The head, one of many that served as street markers in ancient Athens, was found Friday and it appears to be from around 300 B.C. — that is, either from the late fourth century B.C., or the early third century. It depicts Hermes at ‘a mature age.'” – Seattle Times (AP)
Life After A Star (Wars) Turn
John Boyega is 28 and already been there, done that with a Star Wars trilogy. Where to go from that point in one’s career? “He decided it was time to ‘explore more versatility. I’m into so many different types of genres and storytelling. I want to explore that with the freedom I have now.'” And Boyega’s production company already has a several-film deal with Netflix for films from west and east Africa. – The Observer (UK)
A Decades Long Break From Writing, And Then The Booker Shortlist
Tsitsi Dangarembga’s first book, Nervous Conditions, published in 1988, “was hailed as one of the 20th century’s most significant works of African literature.” Then she went to film school. “What saved me was a fellowship from the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center in 2016. My husband took care of the children in Zimbabwe, and I spent four weeks in a place where I was intellectually stimulated, talking about writing with writers.” – The New York Times
A New Bot-Based Book Recommendation Service
And it’s called, uh, Booxby. (Seriously, tech bros?) “Its new search portal asks you to input a book you liked, then it provides (fiction-only) recommendations based on the writing style of that book.” – LitHub
In Pandemic-Inspired Theatre, The Critic Can Also Be The Audience, And The Star
Says one critic of the Dutch Kills Theatre Company’s Temping: “‘Seen’ is wrong — there’s no audience, live or otherwise — but ‘done’ is right. The audience member does everything, including, if your brain works like mine does, thinking about what you’re going to wear on your first day.” – The New York Times
Musicians From Mali Offer Some Advice For Getting Through Tough Times
While the shutdowns across the world created some opportunities for musicians to rest, pause in endless touring, and recuperate from years of relentless work, it’s also caused some major challenges. “We just keep surfing on the waves — see what’s gonna happen next day, what’s gonna happen next day, next month.” – NPR
Indian Acting Legend Soumitra Chatterjee, 85
Chatterjee had a six-decade career in Bengali language films and worked with Oscar-winner Satyajit Ray. His death is from complications of Covid-19. “Pauline Kael … called Chatterjee Ray’s ‘one-man stock company’ who moved ‘so differently in the different roles he plays that he is almost unrecognisable.'” – BBC