“The latest and already much-feted makeover, which has cost £61m, was not prompted by any major crisis, but is as radical as any of its precursors. A sleek five-storey structure with 39 new galleries designed by the architect Rick Mather has been slotted with surgical precision behind Charles Cockerell’s neoclassical temple of the arts, built in 1845 as a showcase for European sculpture and painting. It gives the museum a new heart and lungs.”
Tag: 11.14.09
A New Take On Diaghilev
Drawing on a great deal of new research, and relying wherever possible on contemporary journals and letters, Sjeng Scheijen puts Diaghilev into a different frame to any of his previous biographers. He shows us a man “driven by an overpowering need to explore the mystery of human creativity in its highest form” who “resolved to transform his age and consecrate his life to the cult of beauty.”
Damien Hirst Talks About Art
Has he ever sold out? “I think I’ve got very close. There was a point I could have just churned out the spot and spin paintings for ever and laughed all the way to the bank.” Was he taking the mick out of the art market? “No. You can take the piss out of art, but I don’t think you can take the piss out of the art market. All markets are serious.”
The Man Who’s Reinventing Publishing
“Right now, we have this vision of the publisher as a monolithic service entity that proves everything from typesetting and printing to distribution to sales support, marketing and PR. But there’s no reason it has to do all those things in one go. Or even the basic ones – like providing its products to retail outlets.”
Copyright Bomb Set To Disrupt Music, Publishing Industries
“At a time when record labels and, to a lesser extent, music publishers, find themselves in the midst of an unprecedented contraction, the last thing they need is to start losing valuable copyrights to ’50s, ’60s, ’70s and ’80s music, much of which still sells as well or better than more recently released fare. Nonetheless, the wheels are already in motion.”
Cop Show Wins Top Honors At Canadian Geminis
“The slick cop drama Flashpoint was the big winner at Saturday’s Gemini Awards as it snagged three of the night’s top honours in Canadian television, including best drama.”
Google Proposes Modified Books Rights Deal
“Google, the internet’s search leader, is hoping to keep the deal alive with a series of new provisions. Among other things, the modified agreement provides more flexibility to offer discounts on electronics books and promises to make it easier for others to resell access to a digital index of books covered in the settlement.”
A New Approach To Selling Tickets Online
“Teams are focused on season tickets, big theater groups are focused on subscriptions, that kind of stuff. We are really focused on viral social-marketing technology that will allow music venues and promoters to sell tickets.”
Why Art Tatum Was Never A Superstar
“What was it about Tatum that kept him in relative obscurity? Part of the problem, I suspect, is that his personality was almost entirely opaque. We’re told that he liked baseball and drank Pabst Blue Ribbon beer by the quart, but little else is known for sure about his private life.”
Poland Becomes A Center For Contemporary Art
“Poland’s contemporary artists have put their country on the international art map. Once a must-see for tourists interested in the tragic aspects of Europe’s past, Poland has now become an important destination for contemporary-art fans.”