Category: issues

The Shed Is A Huge Experiment: Let’s See What Happens

So far the Shed has raised an astonishing $500m. As is traditional in the US, where public funding for the arts is minimal and institutions rely on philanthropy, the names of the biggest donors are prominently displayed in the foyer. These include companies such as Coach and Google, who have neighbouring offices and stores. “We’ve got [wealth] right there in our face,” says Alex Poots, “and as long as they keep being generous, this kind of ecology is a transformer for arts. Call the Shed the Robin Hood, but let’s see if it works.” – The Guardian

The Writers Guild Deadline Gets Extended To Friday

The extension came right before the original deadline of 12:01 am on April 7th, “after a Saturday afternoon meeting with a small group of talent agents, at which the agencies said that they would present proposals to the guild for a negotiated settlement and requested an extension. But the guild warned that the requested extension, 12:01 a.m. April 13, would be a ‘true deadline.'” – The Hollywood Reporter

A Way To Make College A Lot Cheaper?

This is how universities could break the tuition cost curve—by making the price of online degrees proportional to what colleges actually spend to operate the courses. So far, colleges have been more aggressive in launching online graduate programs. But there’s huge potential for undergraduate education, too, including hybrid programs that combine the best of in-person and virtual learning. And yet nearly every academic institution, from the Ivies to state university systems to liberal arts schools, has refused to pass even the tiniest fraction of the savings on to students. They charge online students the same astronomical prices they levy for the on-campus experience. – Huffington Post

‘The Apollo Theater Of The South,’ Long Derelict, Restored To Its Art Deco Glory And Now A Working Arts Center

Before World War II, the Attucks Theater was the center of Norfolk’s thriving historically black business district. Like many such buildings, it fell on hard times in the late 20th century, hitting bottom as a pawn shop and decaying storage space. Now it’s a busy center for the arts for its community and city as well as a presenter of big-ticket performers. – CityLab

Can The Shed Mitigate The Corporate Wasteland Of Hudson Yards?

Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Rockwell Group, the Shed is meant to be the cultural giveback that compensates for the vulgar mess of the larger Yards project. Looking a bit like a bubble-clad airplane hangar, it sits on the southern edge of the Yards with two distinct elements defining its architecture: a boxlike form projecting out of the bottom of a high-rise residential tower, and a canopy with translucent plastic side panels, mounted on wheels and rails, that opens onto a public plaza. – Washington Post