Author J.K. Rowling has announced on her web site that the final installment in the wildly popular Harry Potter series will be released in July. “Bloomsbury, her British publisher, said it would publish a children’s hardback edition, an adult hardback, a special gift edition and an audio book on the same day… The Potter franchise is so important to the company’s earnings that it announced the publication to the London Stock Exchange.”
Author: sbergman
Is Libeskind’s Museum A Reflection Of Modern Art?
Denver’s recently completed contemporary art museum, designed by Daniel Libeskind, has been causing quite a stir in the city, and some observers see it as an entirely new way to look at art and the space that surrounds it. But others have wondered whether Libeskind’s design overwhelms the art it’s supposed to be highlighting. Marilynne Mason writes that “the controversy surrounding the Hamilton seems misplaced. So much of modern and contemporary art defies the eye and preconceived notions about beauty and truth, and demands that the viewer learn to question, think, and see anew. And so does this new building.”
NYC Funding Changes May Not Be Good For All
There was much rejoicing last month when New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced an overhaul of the city’s arts funding system, under which the constant need for arts groups to grovel at the feet of local politicians would be eliminated. But “while some arts groups are likely to benefit from [the change], those that fared well under the old system may face significant losses.”
Can Abu Dhabi Become The Arab World’s Arts Center?
The city of Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, is planning a major cultural building boom, with designs underway for a Guggenheim outpost, a performing arts center, and at least two other museums. “With once-proud cities like Beirut and Baghdad ripped apart by political conflict bordering on civil war, Abu Dhabi offers the hope of a major realignment, a chance to plant the seeds for a fertile new cultural model in the Middle East. It’s easy to be skeptical. But judging by the designs released so far, the buildings promise to be more than aesthetic experiments, outlining a vision of cross-cultural pollination.”
An Arts Island Rises In The Gulf
Abu Dhabi isn’t messing around with its plans to become the culture capital of the Persian Gulf: it has signed up several starchitects to design its signature buildings, and all of them will be built on a single undeveloped island off the coast. From Zaha Hadid’s swooping performing arts center to Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim, the designs reflect the truly unusual opportunity that has arisen from a city wishing to build a cultural district entirely from scratch.
Rijksmuseum Reopening Pushed Back
Amsterdam’s world-famous Rijksmuseum, which is undergoing a major restoration, will not reopen until 2010, two years later than originally planned. “Delays had arisen due to the need for extra building permits after some initial designs had been modified… During the renovation, works by Rembrandt and other Dutch masters such as Frans Hals and Vermeer have remained on view in a side wing.”
Vermeer To Hang It Up
The members of the Vermeer Quartet have decided to disband after nearly forty years as an ensemble. The group “was founded in 1969 at the Marlboro Festival and has since appeared at virtually all the prestigious music venues and music festivals. Its discography includes the complete quartets of Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Bartok and additional works by Schubert, Mendelssohn, Dvorak, Verdi, Shostakovich, Haydn, Schnittke, and Brahms.”
Art That Gets Right In Your Face
Tino Sehgal is a difficult artist to pigeonhole, with much of his work falling somewhere between human sculpture and performance art. But even hardened art cynics frequently find themselves at least intrigued by Sehgal’s bizarre output. “What gets seasoned gallerygoers talking is not the form or content of Sehgal’s pieces but the discomfort of interaction with unusual living, breathing human behaviour. A bit like the weird thrill of speed-dating or arguing with a Jehovah’s Witness on the doorstep.”
Taking Nostalgia To A Whole New Level
’80s rock legends The Police are getting back together to perform at the Grammy Awards, and no one is more excited than the record companies that own their music. “The music industry is usually obsessed with looking for the next new thing, but this year it is throwing its weight behind the next old thing. In an increasingly fragmented market, executives are turning to the tried and trusted to bolster sales, with so many bands announcing reformations that the music scene in 2007 is starting to look a lot like it did 20 years ago.”
Can Miami Support Its New Arts Center?
Miami’s new Carnival Center for the Performing Arts has been winning rave reviews in its opening months. But “one wonders how the Center will be filled. With the new opera house the Florida Grand Opera has modestly increased its season from five productions to six. But following the disbanding of the Florida Philharmonic in 2003, Miami has lacked a professional orchestra. Can a city that won’t even support an orchestra supply an audience for the new facility?”