Cash remains tight at the museum, which still hasn’t recovered from the loss of a third of its endowment’s value in the 2008 crash. Charles Venable is focused on increasing attendance with attractions from an upcoming Matisse show to an art-of-the-automobile exhibition that has some observers fuming.
Tag: 02.21.13
Medieval Europe’s Animal Trials – Maybe They Weren’t Entirely Ridiculous
“Pigs, cows, goats, horses, and dogs that allegedly broke the law were routinely subjected to the same legal proceedings as humans. In a court of law, they were treated as persons. … What the trials strongly suggest is that pre-industrial citizens deemed the animals among them worthy of human justice primarily because they had, like humans, the free will to make basic choices.”
Shia LaBoeuf On Twitter, Post-Firing From Broadway Show
“Actors used to be buried with a stake through the heart. Those peoples performances so troubled on-lookers that they feared their ghosts.”
Arts Education Makes A Comeback (Supported By Cultural Institutions)
Suddenly, there’s “a new belief — after years of emphasis on standardized testing — in the power of the arts. Today, more and more policymakers think it is the arts, after all, that can motivate kids, engage them and help them develop 21st-century skills.”
Big Seattle Funder Shuts Down, Transfers Its Assets
“The Seattle-based nonprofit, which raised $35 million in its half century and pioneered the use of the fundraising gala in Seattle, will pay out its remaining obligations, then shut down operations.”
Vienna’s Jewish Museum Criticized For Not Returning Looted Art
“When the Jewish Museum of Vienna was founded in 1988 it was entrusted with safeguarding the art, books and Judaica that survived the Nazis’ attempt to exterminate their owners. But now, 25 years later, the museum has acknowledged it may be in possession of hundreds of items that were looted during the war and not returned to the families who lost them..”
Covent Garden’s Next Boss Will Have Big Shoes To Fill
“Next month Tony Hall leaves the Royal Opera House to become director-general of the BBC. He has worked wonders in his 12 years as chief executive at the Royal Opera House, and he’s going to be one hell of a hard act to follow.” A look at what Hall’s successor will need to do and be.
Covent Garden’s Next Boss: Handicapping The Candidates
Rupert Christiansen considers six likely contenders, including one woman.
What The Best Picture Nominees Say About America (According To A Brit)
“They certainly remind us of the optimism, innocence and joy with which America has gladdened the world since the big screen’s inception.” And yet … “Good must triumph over evil, and this may require the best efforts of American heroes. As frontiersmen or their descendants, these heroes aren’t required to stand on ceremony. The faint-hearts and surrender-monkeys of the old world may get side-tracked by scruples; but that isn’t the American way.”
An Oscar Category We Ought To Have: Best Cameo
The Guardian offers six potential nominees whose performances “made the most impact with the least effort.”