The eternal debate about what books are good for – “I feel that literature is rarely of immediate practical help. I think the kind of knowledge reading fiction imparts is stealthy and slow-burning, and that novels rarely work as instruction manuals that we can pull off the shelf in case of emergency” – turned out to be incorrect. What’s good is that books about quarantines and lockdowns help manage the psychological aspects of the times. – Irish Times
Tag: 05.16.20
Astrid Kirchherr, Whose Black And White Photos Set Our Concept Of The Beatles, Has Died At 81
Kirchherr, a 22-year-old art and photography student, captured the young lads when they were in Hamburg, playing scruffily in the red light district. – The New York Times
Uh-Oh: What Does Facebook’s Purchasing Of Giphy Mean For Other Apps?
If the internet has come to rely not entirely, but very near universally, on visual culture and then Facebook buys that visual culture, what does it mean? – The Verge
How Are Britain’s Art Critics Doing, Seven Weeks Into Lockdown?
Sure, it can be lonely – and nothing can replace being in the room where the art happens – but, well, it could be a lot worse. “I’m only being semi-facetious when I say that a Thursday night clapping session should be devoted to the people who keep Britain’s wifi going.” – The Guardian (UK)