02.28.16 – ArtsJournal Wayback

This Year’s Foreign-Language Oscar Winner Is, In Effect, Philosophy On Film

“Art is often the subject of philosophy. But every now and then, a work of art – something other than a lecture or words on a page – can function as philosophy. Son of Saul, a film set in Auschwitz-Birkenau during the Holocaust, is such a work of art. It engages with a profound set of problems that also occupied the 19th-century Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard.”

Ángel Corella Tries To Make The Ballet Version Of ‘Don Quixote’ More Spanish

Does the piece need it? Well, it was created “for a Russian troupe by a French choreographer (Marius Petipa) and a composer from Austria (Ludwig Minkus).”

This Film School Is Leading The Way To Diversifying Movies (And Oscars)

“Located in a converted piano factory where it sits above state parole offices, Ghetto Film School aims to provide teenagers a foundation in filmmaking that can jump-start careers in the entertainment world. The organization’s founder, Joe Hall, likes to say that ‘if you weren’t born in the Coppola family, we’re your Coppola family.'”

The Oscars Are Worse Than Meaningless

“If you regard the Oscars as anything but the annual, televised offsite retreat of a company that is hugely profitable despite everything about itself (complete with the crummy inside jokes), the problem is really with you. The Academy Awards were never meant to be anything but that.”

In Case You Missed It: A List Of The Oscars Nominees, And The Winners

Everything that was nominated and all of the winners, including at least one or two partial surprises.

Let’s Talk About Penn Station And Design And What Went Wrong One More Time Before The Makeover

Or, as the subheadline of this article has it, “What makes New York’s Penn Station suck so bad?”

A Berlin Museum Runs Tours In Arabic, Helping To Welcome Some Refugees

“The visits can be fraught. ‘Sometimes people say: ‘The Germans have all our heritage! They stole it!’’ said Zoya Masoud, 27, who led the Arabic-language tour that afternoon at the Museum of Islamic Art, which is part of the Pergamon Museum and filled with treasures from empires past. Often, the visitors say the art is probably better off in Berlin because so much in Syria has been destroyed by the war and the Islamic State, Ms. Masoud said.”

How To Discourage People Of Color From Going Into The Arts

“What happens when people of color are discouraged—both implicitly as well as explicitly—from going into the arts and humanities? Here, I’m not just talking about the lack of mentors or opportunities in these fields. I’m also talking about pressures from politicians, from college administrators, even from one’s own family.”

Can Crowdfunding Save JMW Turner’s House From Collapsing?

“Keeping it standing has involved clearing blocked lavatories by hand, shovelling up fallen bricks and plaster, chopping down trees whose roots were ripping apart foundations and, worse, sewer pipes, and scrubbing down all four walls of a room so cold and damp it had become covered in mould from skirting board to ceiling.”

Tag: 02.28.16