Here’s a brief history, going from a five-by-five palindrome from ancient Rome to Victorian double acrostics to four different kinds of riddle (including the anti-riddle). – The Paris Review
Tag: 03.23.20
What The Literature Of Plague Tells Us
Jill Lepore: “The literature of contagion is vile. A plague is like a lobotomy. It cuts away the higher realms, the loftiest capacities of humanity, and leaves only the animal. “Farewell to the giant powers of man,” Mary Shelley wrote in “The Last Man,” in 1826, after a disease has ravaged the world. “Farewell to the arts,—to eloquence.” Every story of epidemic is a story of illiteracy, language made powerless, man made brute. But, then, the existence of books, no matter how grim the tale, is itself a sign, evidence that humanity endures, in the very contagion of reading.” – The New Yorker
Shifting Ground: Are You Ready For A New Discourse For A New World?
“These are not the end times, I mean, but nor are they business as usual, and we would do well to understand that not only is there room for a middle path between these, but indeed there is an absolute necessity that we begin our voyage down that path. To the squealing chiliasts and self-absorbed presentists, indulging themselves with phrases like “the end of the world,” I say: “Did it never dawn on you that all of human history has just been one partial apocalypse after another?” And to the business-as-usual mandarins I say: “Thank you for your service in the glorious battles of the past.” – The Point
Jeremy Marre, Whose Documentaries Introduced Britons and Americans To World Music, Dead At 76
“With a minimal camera and sound crew, Mr. Marre visited Jamaican dance halls, Brazilian favelas, Appalachian churches, Egyptian temples, South African workers’ hostels and Bollywood soundstages to film music and musicians on home turf that was often gritty and unglamorous.” – The New York Times
How I Became A Dance Critic
“So am I a dancer? The short answer is no. And people find this answer surprising. Many expect a dance writer to dance, despite not having the same expectations of other fields. For instance, most food critics are not chefs, and most film critics are not actors or directors.” – Broad Street Review
Scottish Opera Lends Set-Hauling Trucks To Help Supermarket Supply Chains
“The opera company’s drivers have been using their cabs to help deliver food to Tesco stores in Scotland, as supermarkets face unprecedented demand from shoppers during the coronavirus crisis. … Alex Reedijk, Scottish Opera’s general director, said the company had been linked up with Tesco after the supermarket chain contacted a local general haulage company asking for help.” – The Stage
If You’re Only Going To Teach Us Online, Say Yale MFA Art Students, Refund Our Tuition
“We are deeply troubled by the far-reaching repercussions of [the school’s closure],” wrote the students to the dean, “which has … severely curtailed the viability of the unrivaled visual arts education that SoA claims to provide. In light of these circumstances, we believe that financial reimbursement must play a part in the university’s forthcoming actions.” Graduate students at other art schools are making similar demands. – Artforum
Six Indie Filmmakers, Their New Movies Shelved, Talk About Cinema’s COVID Apocalypse
“Their sentiments run the gamut from hope to doom (‘I’ve been wondering when the next mass extinction event would come. This is it.’) and collectively form an uncertain picture of the future of film.” – Vulture
Bitcoin And Shares In Art – Is The Idea Dead?
Two years ago this was a hot idea as a way of expanding the art market. You could own shares in works of art. But then bitcoin value cratered and things have stalled… – The Art Newspaper
As Restoration Of Notre Dame Pauses, Thieves Break In
According to a report by Le Parisien, two men face charges for allegedly attempting to steal various stones from the cathedral after the government ordered a pause on reconstruction so as to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. A spokesperson for Notre-Dame told the publication that the thieves likely intended to sell the stones on the black market. – Artnet