Belgian artist covered entry pillars of a Ghent museum with 8,000 slices of ham. He hopes that over three months the “sculpture” will attract swarms of flies and be a “living” piece of art. “Good art must stink a bit,” he said. Critics have so far disagreed. – The Straits Times (Singapore) (Reuters)
Tag: 04.03.00
AND YOU LIVE WHERE?
France’s cultural minister is perplexed by why so many French choose to live in Britain. Some 60,000 French nationals are registered as living in Britain but officials suspect that the figure may be as high as 180,000, with half of those in London. After a high-profile French model decamped to London, the French culture minister growled: “If you move to London, what you save on tax, you’ll lose in rent and healthcare, not to mention the metro train service.” – Yahoo! (Reuters)
SO MUCH FOR BEING WELL-ROUNDED
Beginning in 2003, Florida’s public universities will require that all incoming freshmen have taken 19 academic courses in high school – four more than are required now. To fit in all the extra work, students may have to give up elective courses in the arts, computers, vocational studies and ROTC. The requirement has arts teachers and guidance counselors worried that the focus on academics threatens the continued success of everything from high school marching bands to popular magnet high schools. – St. Petersburg Times
OF AGE AND ART
The general population is living longer these days. And so are artists. So maybe it’s time to re-evaluate what we expect of older creative artists. – New York Times
CRISIS? WHAT CRISIS?
The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra’s general manager has threatened to shut the orchestra down if the government doesn’t give more money to support it. The orchestra’s music director is non-plussed: It’s simple, he says. “Any mature country needs a national orchestra in order to have its cultural maturity recognized. Therefore the NZSO must stay.” – New Zealand Herald
WORRIED ABOUT GETTING STUCK WITH ANOTHER 8-TRACK?
The new choices in what kinds of equipment you can buy to listen to music on are confusing. But waiting until the industry winnows out some of the choices probably isn’t a good solution. “That’s what convergence is. It’s a buzzword, but all this stuff is coming together – and getting further apart at the same time.” – Wired
CRUSHED GLASS
Philip Glass doesn’t get much attention these days. Time was when his music was anticipated with excitement or hostility. Now it is largely ignored. “Except by the general public, which still sort of likes his music, and by professional beat critics, who routinely dismiss the new works as inherently simplistic or, less often, as tedious recyclings of earlier tricks. His music, outwardly similar to what came before, has declined in quality, and that decline can be described. – New Republic
BBC TO SLASH —
— hundreds of management jobs to find £100 million extra a year for making programs. – BBC 04/03/00
WHAT ABOUT THE BLACKLISTEES?
When a member of the Academy Awards suggested they devote a segment of the ceremony to the blacklist, he was told in concise terms: “‘The Academy’s policy is to remain totally non-political and…any mention of the motion picture industry cooperation with the House Unamerican Activities Committee constitutes a political statement.'” Political or not, history is inescapable and a part of the present. Shouldn’t the Academy “pass a simple resolution honoring the anonymous blacklistees, those who were denied work and recognition at the time? The question is not whether such a resolution may constitute a political statement. It’s the decent thing to do.” – The Nation 04/03/00
A RISING STAR
Critics have almost universally panned Elton John’s “Aida,” but they’ve all agreed on one thing: singer Heather Headley, in the title role as the Nubian princess who falls in love with her captor, steals the show. Trinidad-born Headley has joined Audra McDonald as “the most exciting young singing actresses in the American theater.” – Newsweek