“In Chaucer’s case, the division between life and art is especially glaring: 494 different ‘records’ of his life survive, including matters such as courtly and civic posts he held, awards he received, and at least one place he lived … but not one of them mentions that he was a poet. Why, then, bother to look at these records? What had Chaucer’s busy London life and world of work to do with his poems, other than preventing their completion?”
Tag: 01.24.15
UK Museums Are Hiding Away Artworks Depicting Muhammad
“The Victoria and Albert museum has attempted to conceal its ownership of a devotional image of the prophet Muhammad, citing security concerns, in what is part of a wider pattern of apparent self-censorship by British institutions that scholars fear could undermine public understanding of Islamic art and the diversity of Muslim traditions.”
Iconic Air And Space Museum Needs A Major Overhaul
“The window walls are outdated, skylights leak, the mechanical systems are dying, and the terraces are leaking into the basement car storage. But much worse than that, the stones that clad the building are bowing and cracking, which threaten to make it uninhabitable.”
Reconsidering The Maria Callas Phenomenon
“Callas wasn’t perfect, to be sure. (And perfect can be boring, as some of her successors have demonstrated.) But she was something more: even when she falls short of her best, she gives an intimation of what an ideal performance might sound like. Few more perfect singers have managed to do that.”
Scientists Have Discovered What Makes Someone A Good Dancer
“Northumbria University conducted a study about the male dance moves that are attractive to women. Now you won’t have to think twice the next time you go to a wedding. Just take a look at the science.” (video)
North Koreans Risk Everything To Import Illegal Soap Operas
“The decidedly lowbrow dramas — with names like ‘Bad Housewife’ and ‘Red Bean Bread’ — have, in fact, become something of a cultural Trojan horse, sneaking visions of the bustling South into the tightly controlled, impoverished North alongside the usual sudsy fare of betrayals, bouts of ill-timed amnesia and, at least once, a love affair with an alien.”
Can Pamplona’s New Museum Make It A Destination For More Than The Running Of The Bulls?
“If the architecture of the new gallery is not as eye-catching as Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim, the collection is more impressive, in particular the photographic archive that goes back to the dawn of photography as an art form. It also features works by Rothko, Tàpies, Picasso and Kandinsky.”
Creating Special Days So Kids With Autism Can Enjoy The Museum
“For two hours, the lights are dimmed, the loud noises are turned down and there is room to move around because it’s less crowded.”
In Michigan, Protestors Host A Die-In Against A Conductor Who Supports Putin
“Gergiev is known to have close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Gergiev not only voiced his support for Putin after the leader passed anti-gay legislation, he also recently offered a quote to The New York Times Magazine regarding Russia’s annexation of Crimea.”
That One Time No One On Jeopardy Knew About Esa-Pekka Salonen
Be sure to follow the link to the full Twitter conversation about the entire category. To quote one participant, “Sibelius was $1,600. No one got him either.”