“The intruder, either hungry for better grazing or charmed by the American diva’s voice, had broken through a series of fences before ending up in the water.” – Ninemsn (AAP)
Tag: 12.12.00
ROWLING POSTPONES THE QUEEN
“Harry Potter” author JK Rowling was supposed to collect an honor from the Queen Monday, but postponed the meeting so she could take care of her ill child. – BBC
DESTROYING TIBET
According to recent reports from Lhasa, capital of Tibet, “much of the area around Barkhor Square, the centre of the Tibetan city, has been fenced off, apparently but unconfirmably for demolition. Such destruction has already happened in much of the old town, although it is unclear whether this is due to corruption or official policy.” – The Art Newspaper
THE REAL PROBLEM
What was wrong with art in the last 15 years of the 20th Century? “For a number of reasons, art had given up the ghost under the weight of theory. The breakdown of distinctions between high and popular culture led to all manner of cultural produce and effluent being sifted and read as text. We were top heavy with theorists (not to mention curators), who needed scant visual stimulus to write the work into the flat ergo of post-modernist irony: in short, what we had was nominalism. Artworks merely had to ring the appropriate bell to set the Pavlovian critics slavering for interpretation.” – The Guardian
FAILURE TO KEEP TRACK
Did the Pompidou lose a sculpture? A nine-foot tall one at that? The museum’s director admits it was probably destroyed. – New York Times
IMPRESSIONISTS STRIKE AGAIN
With back-to-back record turnouts, Hartford’s Wadsworth Atheneum will record the highest attendance in the museum’s 156-year history. “This total marks a 41 percent increase from 1999 and a 63 percent increase from the average annual attendance in 1990 through 1999.” – Hartford Courant
DRESDEN’S SUCCESS
The state museums in Dresden recorded an enormous increase in attendance this year, even as other German museums were scrounging for visitors. Even more impressive – the museum staged more exhibitions this year despite reduced funding. – Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
ART THUMBS
Police in Kent England are attempting to crack down on the stolen photograph trade. “In an attempt to make buying and selling stolen property more difficult, customers are being invited to leave their thumbprint with the object they are offering for sale.” – The Times (UK)
NEW NATIONAL CHAIRMAN
The National Gallery of Australia has chosen Melbourne businessman and philanthropist Harold Mitchell as its new chairman. – The Australian
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
Cirque du Soleil, the Canadian troupe that reinvented circuses a decade-and-a-half ago, says it plans to reinvent the entertainment center idea. Announcing an ambitious new project for the bank of the Thames, Cirque says it will also develop “multifaceted entertainment centres in New York, Hong Kong, Las Vegas and London over the next decade.” – The Globe & Mail (Canada)