“The most important consequence of a wave of adoring reviews, followed by a backlash of negative opinion is that it suddenly matters whether you’re the kind of person who loved A Little Life or just didn’t.”
Tag: 12.08.15
After 60 Years Of Growing TV Audience, Five Years Of Decline
Nielsen says that traditional TV viewing by all age groups peaked in the 2009-2010 season, and has been on the decline ever since. Until that point, the audience for TV had grown every year since 1949.
This Is The Guy Who Bought Wu Tang Clan’s Single Copy Album For $2 Million (You Know Him)
“Initially, the Clan wanted to forbid the buyer from publicly releasing the album for 88 years, but over time decided to grant the buyer total freedom as long as the album wasn’t sold commercially.”
Geeks Under The Microscope – Just Who Are They?
“Among their findings is that, contrary to the stereotype of the isolated, obsessed fan, geeks—while largely apolitical—report above-average levels of civic engagement. Many comfortably have one foot in the real world, and another in the fantasy realm.”
Top Posts From AJBlogs 12.08.15
The Ideation Summit: Transforming Stakeholders into Collaborators
Conversations about critical issues happen all the time. Conferences, blogs and community meetings offer any number of opportunities to raise and share experiences with these issues. And yet, we experience seemingly endless discussion with little discernible progress towards shared solutions. … read more
AJBlog: Field Notes Published 2015-12-08
Driving While …
An October article in the New York Times presented research into the nature of the African-American experience of police traffic stops. … This blog is about the arts and community engagement so one might think the issue is not relevant. But any effort to connect with new communities demands understanding those communities. … read more
AJBlog: Engaging Matters Published 2015-12-08
Cautionary words
You might think – given my views on the future of classical music – that I’d welcome what I heard at the Kennedy Center Friday night, when the National Symphony played Ben Folds’ Piano Concerto … … read more
AJBlog: Sandow Published 2015-12-08
The Ailey Dancers Welcome In the Holidays
During the curtain call at City Center that followed the world premiere of Robert Battle’s Awakening, the twelve members of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater joined the audience in clapping enthusiastically for him. … This was the first new dance made for the AAADT by its artistic director. … read more
AJBlog: Dancebeat Published 2015-12-08
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NPR’s Diane Rehm Announces Retirement
“My thinking is that I’ll stay on the air until the election because I really want to see how this will go. My feeling is, I have a number of ideas and I’m perfectly happy doing something different … where I’m not forced to get up at 5 a.m. every morning to prepare for a show. I’ve been doing that for 37 years. Maybe I’ll get to sleep until 7 or 7:30 a.m., like other people do.”
Man Sues Met Museum For Having ‘Racist’ Paintings Of An ‘Aryan’ Jesus
The plaintiff described such paintings as The Resurrection by Perugino and The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes by Tintoretto as “offensive aesthetic whitewashing” because the real Jesus of Nazareth had “black hair like wool and skin of bronze color” like he does. The suit claims the museum and the city of New York are violating his rights under the First Amendment and the Civil Rights Act.
The Complex Psychology of the Geek
“And while this may provoke many to reach for their light sabers, among the qualities [these researchers] consistently find in this population are narcissism, neuroticism, and depression. … [Yet they’re] not linking geek culture with mental illness or antisocial behavior. Among their findings is that, contrary to the stereotype of the isolated, obsessed fan, geeks – while largely apolitical – report above-average levels of civic engagement.”
How I Got Over My Fear Of Running Out Of Ideas And Became A Dancer-Choreographer
Louise Lecavalier, longtime member of La La La Human Steps: “A choreographer once told me, we all have our tricks in our pockets. I thought: I have nothing in my pockets. … But then I worked with Benoît Lachambre, who encouraged me to create choreography. He would arrive at the studio and find me already dancing my guts out, and helped me feel that movement was pouring out of me, and I didn’t need anyone to tell me what to do.”
Pantone Wanted to Celebrate Gender Fluidity With Its Color of the Year – So It Picked Pink *And* Blue
“Everyone hated Marsala, Pantone’s 2015 color of the year, a dark red that critics widely slandered with comparisons to blood, rust, and meatloaf. This year, the company … made an unprecedented move by nominating not one bold color but ‘the blending of two shades’ – Rose Quartz (baby pink) and Serenity (baby blue).”