“Was it better to be bold and risk failure, or to give money to a project that had a good chance of success? And how soon would success have to happen in order to count—five years? Ten? Was it better to be patient or impatient?”
Tag: 01.04.15
Gay Tours Of The Vatican’s Museums (Yes, They’re Real)
“Among the many ways that Pope Francis has changed the tone of the Vatican is with his seeming openness to groups that have long been shunned, from divorced Catholics to children of gay couples. His approach has inspire one Italian gay travel company, Quiiky, to look at the Vatican Museums’ vast art collections from a gay perspective.”
Architect Rafael Viñoly: The View From The Top Of The World
“Architecture is the only media you cannot turn off. You can go to the movies or not go to the movies, and you can read a book or not read a book, but with [buildings] you don’t have a way out.”
Is This Man The Satan Of The Art World?
“In exchange for extraordinary support, Stefan Simchowitz asked not for his artists’ souls but for their art, a deal that many of his protégés lived to regret.”
The Problem With The Whole Free-Tickets-For-Critics Deal (No Good Pretending It Doesn’t Exist)
“In other words, there is an entrenched and rather touching belief on our part that disinterested media coverage plus freebies doesn’t equal oxymoron. Although it is a far from satisfactory state of affairs the system continues because it is mutually beneficial. Mostly.”
The Man Who Brought North Indian Classical Dance To The U.S. Has Died
“As a solo performer, Mr. Das proved an uncommonly entertaining exponent of Kathak. His slashing rhythmic attack, electrifying footwork, dazzling turns and verbalizations, all accompanied by the ringing of the weighty bells he wore around his ankles, won him lifelong fans.”
Algerian Author Tries To Figure Out How To Live With A Fatwa Issued Against Him
“There are elements of the absurd about the plight of Kamel Daoud, an Algerian writer whose debut novel reaped glowing international reviews, literary honors and then, suddenly, demands for his public execution.”
Writers Everywhere Feel Censored – Or Have Censored Themselves – Thanks To Omnipresent Surveillance
“The idea that we are seeing some similar patterns in free countries to those we’ve traditionally associated with unfree countries is pretty distressing.”
Science Says It’s True That Most Popular Music Sounds (Almost Exactly) Alike
“The success of a song or album has little to do with its complexity or quality, and more to do with social influence, or what other people seem to enjoy listening to.”
He Defied The Communists – With Poetry
“A writer who combined broad learning with sly incisiveness, Mr. Baranczak was widely considered a ‘dissident’ poet for his subtly acerbic political poems and his activism. In the 1970s he was banned from publishing in Poland, though he continued to write for underground outlets, and his work became a samizdat pass-around.”