Citing the recent change in the top leadership at the Smithsonian Institution, Sharon F. Patton announced yesterday that she is leaving as director of the National Museum of African Art at year’s end.
Tag: 05.17.08
Dance That’s All Show
“One venerable dance critic has sniffed at Matthew Bourne’s habit of ‘turning some of ballet’s older masterpieces upside-down and shaking them to see what falls out of their pockets’. Others consider him not so much a choreographer as a showy producer. Bourne doesn’t care and neither do audiences.”
The Man Who Bought The Bacon And Freud
“Neither Sotheby’s nor Christie’s disclose information on buyers but sources close to the market confirm that Roman Abramovich, whose fortune is estimated at £11.7bn by The Sunday Times’s Rich List, purchased both lots, apparently for display in his London home. He has not previously been known to purchase works of art at this level.”
Pulling Theatre From History
“Theatrical archaeology isn’t an exact science. To be successful, Jackie Maxwell says, you need the right connections in the field and an instinct for where to dig.”
Artists Take An Ax To Architecture
“Architecture is usually functional and built to restrict the use of space. Some people say architecture is inherently totalitarian and fascistic and these artists are all trying to reinvent the space in all sorts of different ways.”
Britain’s Worst Poet
William MacGonagall has “long been celebrated as Britain’s worst poet, inspiring satirical tributes to his doggerel awfulness from Spike Milligan, Monty Python and even the Muppets. Now the poet, who was once pelted with fruit during his readings and who his own appreciation society call ‘without talent’, is in demand.”
A British Poet Laureate Who Isn’t Male?
Glasgow-born Carol Ann Duffy would be the first woman to hold the 400-year-old office, should she accept, as government sources now suggest she might.
A Mask Of “Sincerity”
“We want our politicians to be sincere, so that we can know they are not hiding anything from us. So all politicians are ceaselessly probed for the little inconsistencies, double standards, concealments and obfuscations that indicate a hypocrite, by opponents who know what damage that label can do. This obsession with sincerity, and loathing of bogus sentiment, has benefited some politicians and damaged others.”
Cleveland Art Institute Plan Way Over Budget
“The Cleveland Institute of Art’s dream of building an iconic new studio building designed by the leading Dutch architect Winy Maas has hit a financial wall. The art institute decided to scale back after a recent estimate showed that the design would cost “well north” of the $55 million budgeted for the project.”
Warsaw Judged Best City For Cheap Culture
What’s the best city to visit if you want to soak in high culture without spending your life’s savings? A new survey says that Warsaw, Poland, is the unlikely winner for art on a budget. “The Polish capital was judged cheapest for a three-day trip visiting museums, galleries and heritage sites.”