Charles Mackerras is turning 80, and he’s being celebrated. “In some respects the deification of Mackerras is a bit silly. Once a conductor reaches a certain age no one will say a word against him – even though he is palpably the same man who was criticised earlier in his career and is still capable of the occasional dud performance. Age somehow confers the mantle of genius. That says something about the conductor’s role: orchestras want a father figure. They will put up with irascibility and a demanding nature in a way they wouldn’t have done from the same person when he was younger. But Mackerras’s public standing has never been higher.”
Tag: 11.04.05
Artist Ordered To Remove Art From Park
City officials in Edmonton, Canada, have ordered a prominent aboriginal artist to take down art in a park. “The sculpture by Jane Ash Poitras included artificial severed moose legs and four bison skulls, along with boulders, stones, flowers and an eagle feather. A City spokesman said there were several calls of complaint and about two-thirds of residents in the area who responded to a letter asking their opinion on the sculpture opposed it.”
St. Paul Chamber Orchestra Finds A Home In Chicago
“Touring has become punishingly expensive for small orchestras, and the days of a concert or two each year in downtown Chicago are long gone for the Saint Paul musicians. But the ensemble, founded nearly 50 years ago, has always been eager to experiment. Tonight, with a concert at the University of Chicago’s Mandel Hall, they are trying something completely different, a three-year Chicago residency that will take them into South Side elementary schools and the university’s music classrooms as well as Mandel.”
Italians Bring Antiquities Theft Charges
Italian prosecutors detail significant thefts of antiquities. “The global scale of the alleged ring’s trade — worth tens of millions of dollars and involving museums from Tokyo to Toledo, Ohio — is outlined in a series of cases that Italian prosecutors are bringing, in part to keep looted archaeological artifacts from auction houses and museums, the papers obtained by Bloomberg News show. ‘A critical point has been reached, where the laxness, and sometimes the complicity of some museums in the U.S., and elsewhere, has been exposed’.”
British Library Puts Its Books Online
With the help of Microsoft, the British Library is digitizing its books that are out of copyright. “The Microsoft deal means that 25 million pages from the British Library’s collections will be put online and made searchable for anyone. More works will be scanned in the future. ‘This is great news for research and scholarship and will give unparalleled access to our vast collections to people all over the world: they will be available to anyone, anywhere and at anytime’.”
Las Vegas Mayor: Graffiti? Off With Their Thumbs!
“You know, we have a beautiful highway landscaping redevelopment in our downtown. We have desert tortoises and beautiful paintings of flora and fauna. These punks come along and deface it. ‘I’m saying maybe you put them on TV and cut off a thumb. That may be the right thing to do’.”
Richmond Mayor Ponders Takeover Of Performing Arts Center
Richmond (VA Mayor Douglas Wilder is considering buying the closed downtown Carpenter Center and reopen it as is as a home for city arts groups. “The concept, which involves an eminent-domain-style takeover of the 2,000-seat complex, immediately drew cautious responses from leaders of the Virginia Performing Arts Foundation, another arts organization and City Council.” The move is the latest in a complicated road to building a new performing arts center.
Picasso Of American Indian Art Dies
R.C. Gorman was 74. “His work and personality exerted an indelible presence on the Taos and Northern New Mexico arts scenes. Internationally, he was one of the foremost Native American artists working today.”
Italians: We have Proof MFA Has Stolen Art
Italian officials are said to have pictures of antiquities being pulled from the ground that they say is documentary proof that Boston’s Museum of Fine Art has stolen art. “It is the smoking gun. It means they came out of the ground; they were looted and cleaned up and sold. That’s about as strong a case as you’re going to find.” MFA officials said yesterday they have yet to hear from Italian authorities. The museum has long disputed that works in its collection were stolen, an assertion underscored yesterday.”
A Biennale For Performance Art
“At the moment, it seems to be the art world’s medium of choice. Admired for its purity and subversive spirit, it is ubiquitous in gallery and museum exhibitions, whether on its own or as an active ingredient in video, installation art, sound art and photography. And performance art – also known as performance – is often the ghost in the machine in even the most static of objects; there is hardly a work of art with a scratchable surface that can’t be assigned so-called performative aspects. The biennial has emerged – without corporate sponsorship or even a sponsoring institution – seemingly out of thin air, hard work and fortuitous timing.”