Who owns the 1485 Madonna and Child? And, perhaps more importantly for art lovers, where is the painting? The tale is long, twisty, and intensely shady. – The Observer (UK)
Tag: 11.15.20
Ugly New Buildings Keep Going Up, And Up, And Up Some More
Rowan Moore found evidence of ugly buildings not only in the UK, but across the world. Why? Modern construction streamlining, perhaps. “It’s not that you can’t design good buildings with modern techniques, but it takes skill and thought. It also takes a degree of influence over detail that modern building contracts, which tend to empower contractors to do what they like, often deny to architects.” – The Observer (UK)
An Obama May Save Bookstores, Again
At least that’s the hope of many U.S. booksellers – that the 44th president’s memoir will juice sales in a way that will help offset pandemic losses. “Demand among American customers is so high that Penguin Random House, Crown’s parent company, has printed 1.5 million copies in Germany to bring over on cargo ships.” – The New York Times