“New public space art projects are using cellphones and other mobile devices to explore new ways of communicating while giving everyday people the chance to share some insights about real world locations. One art project, Yellow Arrow, based in New York City, has developed a system where people can place yellow stickers in the shape of arrows around the city, stating that they have something to say about that particular location. Each arrow, which is ideally placed in a location that holds significance to the person, has its own unique code that can be sent to a mobile phone via text messaging, allowing others to read the message that was left.”
Tag: 04.18.05
Orange Prize Finalists
Six finalists have been chosen for the Orange Prize for fiction. Three Britons and three Americans will vie for the £30,000 prize, with the winner announced on 7 June in London.
Does Leonard Cohen Deserve A Nobel?
A campaign is being mounted to nominate Leonard Cohen for a Nobel Prize. “I surprised myself when I suddenly figured, in a sort of watershed moment, you know this guy actually does deserve the Nobel Prize. It’s the sort of wry, self-irony there. This man is an amazing poet. He’s not just a good poet; he’s an amazing poet. Cohen, whose first love is poetry, enjoyed later success as a recording star. A companion to the Order of Canada, Cohen had published two internationally acclaimed collections before the age of 30 and went on to write six more. ‘He’s a universal poet in a way that I can’t think of anybody since maybe Homer – in western tradition anyway. And Homer, by the way, was a singer too’.”
How Radio Will Reinvent Itself
The retiring manager of New York public radio station WBAI says radio is about to undergo big changes: “Internet radio is the future. I don’t mean traditional radio will disappear. But Internet radio can solve the biggest problem of a WBAI: that there isn’t enough airtime in a week to carry everything you want to carry. With the Internet, capacity is limitless. Once Internet radio becomes as accessible and easy to use as ‘regular radio,’ everything changes.”
Who Wins In Today’s Recording Climate?
The recording business is hurting. “This crucial arm of the serious music industry is not so much in a state of flux as complete turmoil. Technological advances, corporate monoliths and charming (and sometimes wily) cottage industries are all part of a simmering broth of conflicting issues, the outcome of which is, frankly, anybody’s guess. At the moment, the only clear winner is the consumer, offered the widest possible range of attractive offerings at often irresistible prices, but whether there is any prospect of that continuing indefinitely is just one more of those unanswerable questions.”
Billionaire Cancels Museum Plans Outside Paris
A billionaire businessman says he’s canceling plans to build a spectacular new museum of contemporary art outside of Paris because of his annoyance over red tape and official inertia. “François Pinault, owner of one of the finest private contemporary art collections in Europe, is now likely to put it on display in a magnificent 18th-century palace in Venice.”
Does Your iPod Define You?
The old adage used to be “you are what you eat.” But with the advent of digital music and the popularity of gadgets like the iPod, now it’s “you are what’s on your playlist.”
The People Who Lived Before Pompei
Archaeologists have found a prehistoric village under Pompei. “Carbon dating shows that the finds are from prehistoric times, that is, from 3,500 years BC,” Leander Touati said. It was until now believed that Pompei was first inhabited during the Bronze Age. The group of archeologists – part of a larger international project – were mapping a Roman neighbourhood of Pompei when they made the discovery.”
Looking For Innovation In Australia
Australian arts are stagnant, writes Robyn Archer. “Is there still space in this world for the individual who is not at the top of the hierarchy? What, indeed, of the weirdo who simply wants to pursue the work, outside of the mainstream of fashion? Will it mean that such an artist is again destined for a lifetime of neglect, with the possibility of being rediscovered in a hundred years’ time?”
The New Face Of Iowa Writers’ Workshop
Lan Samantha Chang will take over running the prestigious Iowa Writers’ Workshop in January. “Ms. Chang will teach a graduate fiction workshop, choose students for the fiction program (poetry students are chosen by the poetry faculty) and will consult on hiring, among other duties. The two-year program, which leads to a master’s in fine arts, has no specific academic course requirements. The fiction workshop, which became a full-fledged program in 1936, receives 750 applications for 25 places, and there are 450 poetry applications for 25 places.”