“Authorities arrested five Palestinian antiquities dealers in Jerusalem and confiscated items dating back thousands of years from their homes and shops: papyrus fragments from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, the bust of an Etruscan woman, a fresco from Pompeii depicting swimming fish. They also seized more modern objects – two black luxury Audi vehicles – and more than $200,000 in cash.”
Tag: 07.31.17
Artificial Intelligence Program Made Paintings People Liked Better Than The Ones At Art Basel
Researchers at Rutgers University’s Art and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory not only created the software, “[they] showed the generated artworks to a pool of 18 people to judge, mixed with 50 images of real paintings – half by famous Abstract Expressionists and half shown at Art Basel 2016.” Not only did the panel prefer the AI paintings, they thought that many of the Art Basel works had been created by the computer. (As Claire Voon puts it, “zombie formalism is real.”)
Many Thought The Internet Would Liberate Thinking And Make Us Smart. It Didn’t
“In the 1990s, David Gelernter predicted that the internet would be a perfect environment for thinking, both serene and lively. “My idea in Mirror Worlds was that the computer screen should be like the still surface of a moving pond,” he explained. That didn’t happen. The internet gives us the news and assists our research, but it is mostly used for low purposes, a glorified fidget spinner, trolling device, and masturbation aid.”
Starry Night, Maze, Flying Toasters – Remembers Screen Savers?
“Even when we chose them, personalized them, they were just there – artworks that we rarely thought of as art, partly because we never knew the names of the artists who had made them. The best examples of the genre underscored this sentiment by pushing back against the fact of conscious human design.” Jacob Brogan offers a history of screen savers and an explanation (for you young’uns) of why they were necessary and why we now so rarely see them.
Philadelphia’s Dance Scene Is Totally Underrated, Says Dance Magazine
“You know Philadanco and Pennsylvania Ballet. But other than those staples, you may not think of Philadelphia as a huge dance hub. We’re here to prove that Philly is filled with underrated dance talent – and these six companies are just the start.”
After Five Years, What’s Next for Crystal Bridges Museum?
“Founded by Walmart heiress Alice Walton, currently the wealthiest woman in the United States, the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art opened its doors in 2011, but despite a commendable five-year record of accomplishment, it remains a perplexing outlier among the country’s well-endowed art museums – and not just because, like Walton, it grew up in Northwest Arkansas.”
Do Arts Degrees Matter When It Comes To Artistic (Or Career) Success?
“A study from 2016 assesses the odds of artistic longevity through the prism of academia: does a formal education enhance one’s chances of making it (and staying) in the arts? Using data gathered by Statistics Denmark, “Artistic education matters: survival in the arts occupations” analyzes more than 27,000 employment records between 1996 and 2012 across five categories of Danish artists: visual artists, choreographers and dancers, composers and musicians, film/stage actors and directors, and writers (including journalists).”
Troubled Stream: Pandora On The Decline?
“The company said it ended the second quarter with 76 million active listeners who accounted for 5.22 billion listening hours in the quarter, down from 5.66 billion hours in the year-ago quarter. The company lost $275 million in the quarter compared to a $76 million loss the same quarter last year.”
What Is Your Purpose? (The Universe Doesn’t Care)
“Take a moment to think about the mythologies informing your purpose. I’ll reflect on mine, too. The universe, however, won’t. And that might be the most meaningful distinction of all.”
Jerry Saltz: The Art World Needs A Shakeup
“I love the art world; great art is getting made and shown. Art will live, as always. But we all have to admit that the art world isn’t the definition of radical right now. There’s still too much inbred art about itself or otherwise so specialized that it takes reams of explaining in almost unreadable texts just to say why it’s relevant at all — and those things that might feel relevant, or radical, in another context often get so buffered and wrapped in the wealth of the system — fancy museums, big biennials — that they cease to offer anything truly new-seeming.”