The popular early-music group Anonymous 4 have decided to pack it in after 17 years. “Since forming in 1986 in New York ‘as an experiment’ in response to the lack of opportunities for woman to sing early music repertoire, the group have gone on to achieve great commercial success, clocking up nearly 1000 concerts internationally and selling over 1 million discs.”
Tag: 02.27.03
Oprah To Start New Book Club
A year after shutting down her popular TV book club, Oprah is starting a new book club – this time for classic books. “Winfrey plans to make a classic selection three to five times a year, in shows originating from a site connected with the book or the author.”
Museum Car Picks Up Driving Fine
It now costs £5 to drive into the center of London. But officials at one museum were surprised to get notice of a fine for the museum’s 105-year-old Daimler that has not been on the road since 1947. “We were surprised to get the paperwork because the Daimler has not moved under its own power for decades,” said Andrew King, curator of the Bristol Industrial Museum, where the car has been on display for 25 years.”
A World Of Hurt (But Is It Art?)
The latest reality TV shows feature pain or gross-outs. “Pain is the new rock‘n’roll”, proclaims one show. “It may be, but it isn’t exactly new; pain and dangerous stunts have been finding an arts audience for years. Edinburgh Fringe-goers were watching Jim Rose juggle with chainsaws when Jackass’s Knoxville was a twinkle in an MTV executive’s eye. Devotees of the boundary-pushing forms of live art have been witnessing representations of self-harm for some considerable time. Now it’s gone mainstream, what has changed?” And is it art?
UK Producers Form “Virtual” Movie Studio
Hoping to encourage the making of British films, a group of prominent producers are hoping to raise £50 million-£136 million to create what they’re calling a “virtual studio” to produce movies. The idea is to offer “long-term financial support” to British feature films.
Scotland’s National Gallery Makes A Titian Its Own
Scotland’s National Gallery buys itself a Titian for £11 million. The painting has hung on loan to the gallery for 60 years. “It took more than two years to complete the deal, using £7.6m worth of lottery funding and a £2.5m contribution from the Scottish executive. The rest of the money came from the National Art Collections Fund and the National Galleries. To facilitate the sale, £2.4m of the picture’s value was offset against inheritance tax.”
Tracking Down Nazi Art Loot – A Futile Task?
More people are trying to track down art looted by the Nazis during World War II than ever before. And museums and collectors are under greater scrutiny. But “experts have become increasingly pessimistic that much more of it will ever be recovered and restored to its rightful owners. The Germans seized perhaps 600,000 important works from 1933 to 1945. “As many as 100,000 pieces are still estimated to be missing, and some have undoubtedly been destroyed. ‘Obviously, what this is all about is the art world having to pay the price for lack of interest in provenance that they have shown for generations. It’s a good idea to put it on the Internet and make it available, but I don’t think there’s a great deal of follow-up by museums’.”
Met Museum Lands Matisse Trove
The Metroplitan Museum lands a gift of 50 paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints by Matisse, valued at $100 million. “The gift, which comes from a foundation named after Matisse’s youngest son, Pierre, and Pierre’s wife, Maria-Gaetana Matisse, is one of the most important gifts of modern art the Metropolitan has ever received.”
The Great CD Rebate (Hurry – Time Is Running Out
Did you buy a CD between 1995 and 2000? Even one? “As part of a settlement in a huge price-fixing lawsuit, the major labels and a few record retailers are bankrolling a $67.4 million fund, to be split among all the people who bought an album between 1995 and 2000. Exactly how much money will be determined by the number of people who send in applications. So far, 2.8 million claimants across the country have signed up. At that rate, less administrative costs, everyone gets about $16 or $17 apiece.” But time is running out…
WTC: Focus On The Memorial
“The Libeskind design was considered the front-runner for weeks, although a rival plan by an architecture team called Think, which featured two soaring latticework towers called the World Cultural Center, collected strong support as the decision neared. Ultimately, however, rebuilding officials voted in favor of Mr. Libeskind’s somber treatment of the memorial and the incorporation of an active street life in the commercial portions of the site.”