“Picasso’s work in ballet was an important part of his biography and he created some powerful stage images, especially in Parade. But how much does it help, in trying to understand his paintings, to have [English National Ballet’s] dancers in the gallery?”
Tag: 11.01.11
Museum Of Mathematics Coming To Manhattan
“As a devout numbers geek, Glen Whitney was bothered that the cultural landscape offered no museum celebrating the field of mathematics. So he left his job as an algorithms specialist and manager at [a hedge fund] and created the nonprofit Museum of Mathematics. This year, he found a 19,000-square-foot space on East 26th Street in Manhattan and plans to open the doors in 2012.”
EVA & ADELE – Berlin’s Oddest Couple
The pair (who insist on the capitals and ampersand) talk alike, dress alike (in flamboyant, andogenous outfits), and they would not get married until Eva was officially declared female. “We’ve invented our own sex,” they say. “We are an artwork … Wherever we are is museum.”
Should Wikipedia Be Designated A World Heritage Site? Think About It…
“At the Wikimedia Conference in March, a German coalition proposed that Wikipedia become the first digital World Heritage site. A petition was drafted, declaring Wikipedia “a masterpiece of human creative genius.” Unesco was not impressed.”
Protests Over Louvre’s Plans To Clean Leonardo
“The Louvre’s latest attempt to conserve a masterpiece by the artist, The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne, 1508, has yet again sparked a wave of debate about cleaning paintings, even if they are dirty and discoloured.”
Musicians Reject Louisville Orchestra’s Contract Offer
“Musicians with the Louisville Orchestra made a show Monday of rejecting management’s latest contract offer, while also confirming that they’ve filed a charge with the National Labor Relations Board claiming that orchestra officials have refused to bargain in good faith.”
When A Show Goes Wrong, Who Gets The Blame?
A badly miscast actor sinks an otherwise excellent production. Should a critic criticize the performer or the misguided director who cast him?
Why Do Authors Kill Off Their Characters?
“JK Rowling has confessed that halfway through the Potteriad, at a low point (it can’t, surely, have been money worries) she was tempted to rub out Ron Weasley. Her motive? ‘Sheer spite’, she says.” (She’s hardly the only one, either.)
Tokyo String Quartet To Lose Last Tokyo Members
“Two members of the Tokyo String Quartet , including its founding violist, will retire from the group at the end of next season, in June 2013 … The violist, Kazuhide Isomura, 65, helped start the quartet in 1969. Also leaving is the second violinist, Kikuei Ikeda, 64, who joined in 1974.” The remaining members are violinist Martin Beaver and cellist Clive Goldsmith.
Why, Exactly, Should Calling A Joint ‘Obama Fried Chicken’ Be Considered Racist?
A Bangladeshi immigrant in Brooklyn who opened a fast-food place he named after the President was mystified by the ensuing protests; he thought he was paying a compliment. Chicken restaurants in Hong Kong and China have had similar experiences. Yet, as Jesse Bering observes, “the issue of why, exactly, the juxtaposition is so verboten isn’t entirely clear, even to most [Americans].”