Category: issues

Today, the Colosseum stands bald and bare. But for centuries, it was a wild and overgrown place, and its lost history as a primeval garden ruin has left traces in the art and poetry of countless generations that walked among its stands.

“Can a collection of Persian antiquities held at a Chicago museum be used to pay damages to the American victims of a terrorist bombing in Jerusalem? That was the question argued at the US Supreme Court on 4 December, in a claim brought by Jenny Rubin and others against Iran. But the justices who questioned the lawyers involved in the case seemed skeptical about allowing the artefacts to be seized.”

“Currently, 500 to 600 ships – a yearly 1,000 to 1,200 entrances and exits – of up to 96,000 gross tonnes enter the lagoon from the Adriatic by the Lido opening to sail through Venice … But the Comitatone has rejected the solution favoured by environmental scientists and some politicians, which is to build a floating port outside the lagoon, from which passengers would be brought into town in smaller boats.”

“While inspecting the property for damage, workers discovered additional layers of walls that they did not know existed. The inner walls, hidden behind the outer walls, contained insulation that took on water and remain potentially infected with bacteria that could grow if left in the basement.” Re-opening of the venue, home to Houston Grand Opera and Houston Ballet, has been postponed from May until at least September.

“What’s funny about sexual assault? Six female comedians weigh in on rape jokes, and how stand-up is changing in the post-Weinstein era.” (video)

“To what degree are cultural institutions responsible for vetting every dollar they receive? Can financially strapped arts organizations be picky about a patron’s source of wealth, and if so, where should they draw the line? At a donor who engages in unlawful or unethical behavior? Or whose conduct is at odds with the institution’s goals?”

Despite its libidinous carnival, sexy music and skimpy clothes, Brazil is also a deeply conservative and religious country – and it is currently witnessing a culture war between those two sides of its national character. The battlefield for those skirmishes has been the country’s museums and cultural institutions.

“The Knight footprint is everywhere on this cultural renaissance,” says the founder and director of the theater company Miami New Drama. Adds the director of the Pérez Art Museum Miami, “It would be hard to imagine doing the things we do without them. It’s palpable on a daily basis.”

The artists left Deathtrap in July, feeling betrayed by the city of San Francisco, which fractured their community. “If there’s a silver lining to being forced from their home, it’s that some of the former Deathtrap residents formed 30 West, a nonprofit that hopes to build a live-work place that won’t be shut down because of code violations and zoning restrictions. The 30 West collaborative began leasing an empty warehouse in Oakland in June.”