The Role Of The Arts Going Forward

Josephine Ramirez: “Those of us who work in arts and culture are primary caretakers of an absolutely essential public value. We have a crucial role as facilitators, creators, nurturers, promoters and producers of arts experiences — ones that connect people, address their emotions and stories, ignite precious human imagination and deepen our ability to understand others unlike ourselves. The past months have also reinforced my belief that the arts field must evolve so we can deliver impactful experiences and processes that strengthen society. Evolving towards this end means
rethinking and retooling so we can more fully support emotional, psychological and intellectual health.” – KCET

The Evolution Of The Quizbowl, From Radio To Screen To Zoom

“Technology and trivia may not be obvious bedfellows. But trivia enthusiasts in the postwar-trivia boom of the 1950s would surely look in envy at technologies we take for granted today: word processors, search engines, wikis, videoconferencing services. In today’s Tedium, I take you through the technological evolution of a trivia format called quizbowl.” – Tedium

Instead Of Canceling Its Next Production When COVID Hit, This Theater Completely Reimagined It

Aleshea Harris’s Is God Is was the last show of the season at the
Wilma Theater in Philadelphia, and when the shutdown came, there was still time to figure something out. “We then went through at least four different iterations of what the production could be,” said managing director Leigh Goldenberg, “so that we could still tell the story, share the art and employ the folks involved.” The key problem was that what most theaters were doing (reading plays on Zoom) would not work with this script. So the Wilma folks got a better idea. – NPR

All The Flags Now At NYC’s Rockefeller Center Were Custom-Designed By Artists (Some Of Them Quite Famous)

“Hundreds of New Yorkers submitted proposals earlier this year to design eight-by-five-foot flags. This past Saturday, the 192 winning designs were unfurled on the [flagpoles] surrounding the plaza’s ice rink. In addition to the open call, 13 well-known artists” — among them Laurie Anderson, Faith Ringgold, KAWS, Marina Abramović, Hank Willis Thomas, Jenny Holzer, Sanford Biggers, Sarah Sze, and Carmen Herrera — “were also commissioned to create flags.” – Artnet

An App For Serialized Novels Draws Tens Of Millions In Investment Dollars

“Radish, which has offices in Seoul and New York, says it has seen significant revenue growth since its 2016 launch, and that it has produced more than 6,500 episodes across 30 original series. Genres currently available on the app include romance and paranormal/sci-fi, but growth is planned for the LGBTQ, young adult, horror, mystery and thriller categories.” – Deadline

The World’s New Favorite Refugee Writer Tries To Get Comfortable With Freedom And Fame

Far from his native Kurdish village, escaped from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, now released from the Australian internment camp in Papua New Guinea where he wrote his award-winning No Friend but the Mountains on a cell phone, Behrouz Boochani has received asylum in New Zealand and is settled in safe, pretty, tranquil Christchurch, where most Kiwis seem thrilled to have him. It’s driving him a little nuts. – The New York Times Magazine