The economic downturn could prove to be a good thing for books, say some industry insiders. In the economic decline “books may well even reclaim market territory that many deemed lost to other, more expensive entertainments.”
Tag: 08.21.08
Should We Just Accept Bad Spelling?
“Those of us who work in universities are used to reading essays by students who have liberated themselves from the oppressive regime of good grammar and spelling. Some of us still bother to correct misspelled words; others have become tired and indifferent to the problem of poor spelling. Now, an academic has come up with an interesting compromise. Ken Smith, a criminologist at Bucks New University, England, argues that we should chill out and accept the most common spelling mistakes as ‘variant spellings’.”
When Arts Criticism Is Properly Performed
“Good criticism extends the life of a play perhaps not in the number of performances, but by helping to continue the dialogue after the curtain comes down and the actors go home for the night. Good criticism should be a reminder to audiences that theater was interactive millennia before the Internet and that audiences have their own responsibility in this art form, one that goes beyond making sure their check to the box office doesn’t bounce.”
The Mini-Me – Short Writing Is In
“Short is in. Online Americans, fed up with e-mail overload and blogorrhea, are retreating into micro-writing. Six-word memoirs. Four-word film reviews. Twelve-word novels. Mini-lit is thriving.”
Gehry Out For Brooklyn Theatre Project (He’s Surprised)
“Architect Frank Gehry will no longer be a part of the project to build a permanent home for the Theater for a New Audience in the BAM Cultural District in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, the theater’s founder said Thursday. But the announcement came as a surprise to Mr. Gehry, who said he wasn’t told of the change.”
Rick Lombardo Named To Lead San Jose Rep Theatre
Lombardo, 49, is artistic director of the New Repertory Theatre. The $2 million-a-year institution recently moved into its own theater complex at Arsenal Center for the Arts in Watertown, Mass., just outside of Boston. San Jose Rep has a $5.9 million budget for 2008-09.
Business Slowdown Threatens Corporate Arts Support
“As repo men and vulture investors circle, a question has been rippling: Will banks jettison their investments in the art world–their sponsorship of major events, institutions large and small? At stake are tens of millions of dollars in funding.”
Why Are So Many Arthouse Films So Dreadful?
“Decision-making in subsidised cinema is ultimately in the hands of bureaucrats and politically-appointed placemen. Perhaps, if film-makers and critics were in charge, quality would win through? Unfortunately, the admiring commendations offered to the creators of utter dross by all too many of such eminent personages puts paid to that one.”
Positive Attitude Improves The Brian
Brain mapping shows that the areas for emotional and executive functions are interconnected physiologically. (Executive function governs our ability to start, stop, plan and execute actions.) Because of that, thinking positively helps to create new connections between neurons in the brain that support motivation and effort — now and in the future. As a basic concept in neuroplasticity states: “Cells that fire together wire together.”
Underwear Sculpture Removed From Building After Complaints
“The offending art, by Joyce Zipperer, was installed with other artwork in the lobby of the Washington Square building at 1050 Connecticut Ave. NW. “Unmentionables” consists of 10 styles of women’s underwear — from old-fashioned bloomers to a skimpy thong — all made out of metal and strung along a clothesline.”