Who Rates Backstage

Dancers and dance companies are judged by their work on the stage. But the people who work backstage have another set of criteria for judging performers…Brooklyn Academy stagehands’ “relationship with Mark Morris, which dates to the early 80’s, has sparked a degree of critical discourse between them and his work; and aside from their technical strengths, they understand theater. These Brooklyn Academy stagehands have taste.”

Why Tracking The Bestsellers Might Not Be Good For Business

One of the frustrations of tracking the book industry has been getting accurate sales data. BookScan offers a solution and “allows publishers to improve their marketing efforts, while also managing their stock more effectively.” It’ll transform the publishing industry, many say. Yes it will, writes one refugee from the music world, where SoundScan revolutionized the tracking of music sales. But it might not be a good thing for those who love books…

NY State Agency Warns Architects Not To Cooperate With NYT

A New York state agency warned architects not to cooperate with a plan by the New York Times to publish in advance plans for rebuilding on the site of the World Trade Center. “Sources tell Newsday that Times’ chief architecture critic, Herbert Muschamp, asked the teams working on plans for the trade center site to show him their work in advance of tomorrow’s public unveiling by the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., the state agency charged with rebuilding the site. He had planned to have a story in the Times prior to public disclosure of the designs.” None of the architects agreed, according to Newsday sources.

What A Lottery Can Do (Should It Do?)

In Scotland, the National Lottery has, for the last eight years injected millions of pounds into sport, heritage, health, education and the arts. The massive infusions of cash have been used to “improve buildings, facilities and the well being of communities. It’s been very successful: the Scottish Arts Council alone has invested £170 million in arts facilities and activities up and down the country, not just for flagship buildings, but for dozens of musical instruments, children’s workshops and skills training.” Now Scots are being asked if the money’s going to the right places…

Apres Oprah – How The TV Book Clubs Are Faring

In the heyday of Oprah’s Book Club, the lucky author whose book was picked for the club hit the jackpot. After Oprah stopped her club, it seemed like every other TV show on the air started its own club. How have the clubs fared? They’re no Oprah, but they help – the sales increase for a selected book is “about 20 percent of what an Oprah would do.”

Off The Rack

The magazine business is changing in a big way. The pace is speeding up, and new titles spout as older ones fall away. “Publishing has become like show biz. There is no longer the wait-and-see attitude that there used to be. If advertisers think something is connecting with consumers, they will jump right in.”

Liverpool’s Building Of Bilbao Proportions

Liverpool is building a citry-changing architectural project. “The £225 million project on the Pierhead is the centrepiece of Liverpool’s urban regeneration plans. It’s big, both physically and in its ambitions, and includes half a million square feet of shops, a 20-storey block of flats, bars, a hotel and a museum. Above all, it will be overpoweringly visible. It is one of those skyline busting landmark structures that changes everything around it. If Liverpool needed a Sydney Opera House, this would be it.”

An Art Market Gone Dry

The weakening supply of Old Master paintings on the market has been an issue for several years in the auction business. But “last week the weakest line-up of Old Masters that dealers could remember for years totalled only a paltry £13.8 million at the two auction houses. Faced by scores of dull, substandard paintings, the market either bought cautiously or did not bid at all.”

Note To Readers

Earlier today, we had two items posted from The Art Newspaper about financial difficulties at the Dia Foundation and Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s Central Park project. The items were posted last night, but this morning editors at The Art Newspaper decided to pull them after important details were disputed by the principles. We’ll post more information when we get it. UPDATE: A spokesperson for Dia emails with a statement concerning the Foundation’s finances. Click the link at the top of this item to read it.

The Canaletto Under Our Noses

After an extensive cleaning, a painting that had hung in Scotland’s National Galleries for 150 years, has been identified as a Canaletto worth £2 million. “The picture, which shows gondoliers and sailors at work in 18th century Venice, was identified at the time as a Canaletto copy by an imitator or student of the artist, and had been valued at no more than £5,000.”